Samay Raina walked into the Supreme Court on Tuesday and walked out ₹3 lakh poorer. The comedian, along with four others linked to the India’s Got Latent controversy, got slapped with the fine after the court decided he’d been dodging its earlier orders instead of actually following them.
A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, didn’t hold back. The court said it had reason to believe Raina had “taken the court for a ride” and “brazenly violated” its directions, adding that things got worse when an affidavit was filed claiming compliance that simply wasn’t backed by anything on record.
What This Case Is Actually About
Back in November 2025, the Supreme Court had ordered Raina and other comedians tied to the case to host at least two fundraising events a month, with proceeds going toward a corpus for treating persons with Spinal Muscular Atrophy. The court also told them to actively bring specially-abled individuals into their shows.
The case itself traces back to a petition by the Cure SMA India Foundation, which accused Raina of making insensitive remarks about the cost of treating SMA and of mocking someone living with the condition on his show.
When the matter came up again this week, Senior Advocate Aparajita Singh, representing the foundation, told the court that Raina never once reached out to her client or any other specially-abled person to be part of his shows, despite the court’s clear directive.
Court Wasn’t Buying The Excuses
Things got heated fast. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta weighed in too, pointing out that Raina keeps a “nimbu-mirchi” charm on stage as a superstition against bad luck, and suggested that says a lot about where his priorities actually lie.
Raina’s counsel argued that his shows had raised ₹9 lakh for disabled persons. Singh’s response was blunt: they never wanted the money, they wanted the inclusion the court had actually ordered. Justice Bagchi picked up on that too, telling Raina that if he was using someone’s disability to justify his own commercial speech, the other side’s right to dignity mattered just as much.
The CJI didn’t mince words either, telling Raina that being a public figure comes with the responsibility to actually respect people, not just talk about it.
The Fine, And What Happens If He Skips Out Again
The bench had initially floated a much steeper cost of ₹10 lakh before settling on ₹3 lakh per person, to be deposited within two weeks. But the warning that followed was sharper than the fine itself: if the five don’t fall in line this time, the amount jumps to ₹30 lakh.
This whole episode is an offshoot of the bigger India’s Got Latent fallout, the same case that had earlier seen YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia barred from hosting shows over FIRs linked to offensive remarks made on Raina’s platform. That ban was eventually lifted, on the condition that the accused would organise shows for the disabled community. Tuesday’s order makes clear the court isn’t done watching to see if that promise actually holds up.