Comedian Samay Raina Summoned By Maharashtra Cyber Cell Again, He Says He's In US

YouTuber Samay Raina has been summoned by the Maharashtra cyber cell for the second time this week amid a row over podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia's comment on the former's YouTube show "India's Got Latent".

While informing that he will return from the US on March 17, Mr Raina has sought more time to respond to the summons.

Mr Allahbadia, who had over 16 million followers across social media platforms before the row, drew ire after a video of his controversial comments on intimacy between parents led to a massive debate on freedom of speech and what constitutes decency.

A short clip from the show, which is now viral, shows Mr Allahbadia asking a contestant, "Would you rather watch your parents have sex every day for the rest of your life or join in once and stop it forever."

Also Read | Why CCTVs At Mumbai Studio Didn't Capture Ranveer Allahbadia's Crass Remark

Though he issued a video apology, calling his comment a "lapse in judgement". Mr Raina deleted all episodes of the show "India's Got Latent" from YouTube, and said he will fully cooperate with the probe, but the issue was far from defused.

The Mumbai Police have recorded the statements of seven persons, including social media influencer Apoorva Makhija, while Mr Allahbadia will appear before them in a day or two, officials told PTI.

The Maharashtra Cyber Department had summoned more than 40 persons, asking them to join the probe into the case. The 40 people included participants and judges from the previous episodes of the show.

The Guwahati Police also registered a case against Mr Allahbadia and four others and a team in Mumbai to investigate the matter.

The matter even reached the Parliament when Shiv Sena MP Naresh Mhaske raked up the issue and called for a law to regulate social media.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Fadnavis said though he hasn't seen the clip in question, he cautioned people about the limits of freedom of speech. "Everyone has the freedom of speech but our freedom ends when we encroach upon the freedom of others... In our society, we have made some rules, it is absolutely wrong if someone violates them. Action should be taken against them," he said. 

The National Commission for Women (NCW) on Tuesday asked Mr Allahabadia, Mr Raina, Ms Makhija, Jaspreet Singh and Ashish Chanchlani, as well as the show's producers Tushar Poojari and Saurabh Bothra to appear before it on February 17 in New Delhi.