Honey Singh skips Maharashtra cyber summons, seeks more time to appear

The case relates to remarks allegedly made by Singh during a concert in Delhi. A video clip from the performance subsequently went viral on social media, in which Singh appeared to make an indecent reference to having sex in cars

MUMBAI: Rapper and singer Hirdesh Singh, better known as Yo Yo Honey Singh, failed to appear before Maharashtra Cyber on Monday after being summoned for questioning over allegedly objectionable remarks made during a concert in New Delhi. The cyber police said they would approach the court for an arrest warrant and initiate the process of issuing a Look-out Circular (LoC) against him.

Honey Singh skips Maharashtra cyber summons, seeks more time to appear

A Maharashtra Cyber official said Singh had sought additional time to appear before the investigating officer.

“We had summoned Yo Yo Honey Singh, but he failed to appear and has sought some time,” a Maharashtra Nodal Cyber Police officer said.

The officer said the agency would now approach the appropriate court seeking an arrest warrant and would also issue an LoC to ensure that Singh does not leave the country.

The case relates to remarks allegedly made by Singh during a concert in Delhi. A video clip from the performance subsequently went viral on social media, in which Singh appeared to make an indecent reference to having sex in cars. The remarks drew criticism from several social media users, following which a complaint was made to the cyber police and a case was registered.

Explaining the context of his remarks, Singh said he had interacted with a leading gynaecologist who had raised concerns about sexually transmitted diseases among younger people because of unprotected sex. He said he had attempted to communicate a message about the issue in a language he believed Gen Z would understand.

“Seeing a larger number of Gen Z, I tried to convey a message in a language which they would prefer. However, I deeply regret that the way I expressed this message was inappropriate and not acceptable to many. I offer my heartfelt apologies,” he had said in his video apology.

The latest controversy comes months after Singh faced another legal challenge over the alleged use of objectionable lyrics during a public performance.

In April, the Delhi High Court directed the Centre to take down URLs of Singh’s song ‘Volume 1’ from social media and file-sharing platforms, observing during the hearing that the song was “highly vulgar, obscene and derogatory towards women”. The court said artistic freedom and freedom of speech and expression could not be invoked to justify such content.

The petition was filed by Hindu Shakti Dal, which alleged that Singh had performed two lines from the song during a concert at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Delhi on March 1, 2025. The organisation had claimed that the song, released in 2006 by Singh and rapper Badshah, was objectionable and accessible to children on online platforms.

In May, the Delhi High Court also directed Singh to file an affidavit in connection with the petition.