The Supreme Court of India has mandated that social media influencers, including popular comedian Samay Raina, must issue public apologies on their podcasts and shows for making derogatory jokes about people with disabilities, according to a report by Hindustan Times.

The court's directive affects five content creators: Samay Raina, Vipul Goyal, Balraj Paramjit Singh Ghai, Sonali Thakkar, and Nishant Jagdish Tanwar, who were all summoned over their offensive remarks targeting disabled individuals.

During Monday's proceedings, on August 25, the apex court also instructed the government to develop comprehensive guidelines for social media platforms to prevent content that ridicules or offends disabled persons, women, children, and senior citizens.

The legal action stems from a petition filed by CURE SMA Foundation of India, which represents individuals with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). The organisation highlighted how these influencers made insensitive jokes about people suffering from SMA and other disabilities during their programs.

Justice Surya Kant, leading the bench, strongly criticised the content creators during May's hearing, stating that while people claim the fundamental right to free speech, the court would restrict any expression that demeans other communities.

The foundation presented video evidence showing the influencers mocking people with disabilities, arguing that such content constitutes hate speech and violates constitutional rights under Articles 14 (Right to Equality before Law) and 21 (Right to Life and Personal Liberty).

The petition emphasised that this content gives birth to harmful stereotypes and negatively impacts the social participation of disabled individuals.

This marks a repeat offence for Raina, who previously faced Supreme Court scrutiny alongside Ranveer Allahbadia for controversial statements made on the comedy show 'India's Got Latent'.