YouTuber Ashish Chanchlani Seeks Legal Action as Maharashtra, Assam Are Asked to Respond

On Friday, the Supreme Court asked the Maharashtra and Assam governments to respond to a plea by YouTuber Ashish Chanchlani, who is seeking to quash or transfer to Mumbai an FIR filed in Guwahati regarding allegations of promoting obscenity in an online show. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh issued a notice and linked Chanchlani's petition with influencer Ranveer Allahbadia's ongoing case.

The bench noted that Chanchlani had already been granted bail in the case. Chanchlani's counsel argued against multiple FIRs being filed for the same show. The bench acknowledged the issue was already under review and linked Chanchlani's case with Allahbadia's. On February 18, the Supreme Court had granted interim protection from arrest to podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia over his controversial comments on a YouTube show, calling them "vulgar" and damaging to society.

Multiple FIRs were filed against Ranveer Allahbadia, known as BeerBiceps, for his comments about parents and sex on comic Samay Raina's YouTube show "India's Got Latent." On Tuesday, the Gauhati High Court granted interim bail to Ashish Chanchlani while hearing his anticipatory bail petition and instructed him to appear before the investigating officer within 10 days. The FIR was filed by the Guwahati Police on February 10 following a complaint from an individual, with charges under several sections of the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhtia (BNS), the Information Technology Act, Cinematograph Act, and the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act.

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