India’s Got Latent row: Ranveer Allahbadia appears before Maharashtra cyber police to record statement

Podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia and YouTuber Ashish Chanchlani appeared before Maharashtra cyber police over "obscene" comments on India's Got Latent.

MUMBAI: Podcaster and influencer Ranveer Allahbadia on Monday appeared before the Maharashtra cyber police to record his statement for the first time since being booked on February 12 for allegedly making “obscene” comments on a comedy talent show, India’s Got Latent.

India’s Got Latent row: Ranveer Allahbadia appears before Maharashtra cyber police to record statement

The 31-year-old had been summoned several times after his comments triggered a row but hadn’t appeared before the police until Monday, when he was questioned for four to five hours, according to officials. He responded to the summons six days after the Supreme Court granted him interim relief from arrest and asked him to cooperate with the police.

Ashish Chanchlani, another YouTuber who had appeared on the controversial episode along with Allahbadia and who has been named in a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Assam police, also appeared before the Maharashtra cyber police on Monday to record his statement.

“They came around 11 am and left after four to five hours. If required, we will summon them again,” said a Maharashtra cyber cell police officer.

Chanchlani had moved the Supreme Court on February 21 seeking the Assam police’s FIR to be either quashed or transferred to the Maharashtra cyber police, who are already investigating the matter. Apart from Allahbadia and Chanchlani, the others named in the Assam police’s FIR are comedians Samay Raina, Jaspreet Singh and Apoorva Mukhija.

The Maharashtra cyber police have summoned more than 30 people for questioning after registering an FIR against them under section 67 (transmission of obscene material in electronic form) of the Information Technology Act and sections 79 (insult a woman’s modesty), 196 (promoting enmity between different groups), 296 (obscene acts and songs in public places), 299 (obscene acts and songs in public places) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, based on a complaint filed by a 38-year-old subscriber of the show. The summoned people include comedians, content creators, judges, artistes, and hosts of all six episodes of India’s Got Latent.

The row erupted after Allahbadia, known for his podcast BeerBiceps, asked a contestant on India’s Got Latent a sexually explicit question involving incest and voyeurism during an episode published on YouTube on February 9. The episode was taken down from YouTube two days later following a complaint by the Union government.

Allahbadia, who had over 16 million followers across social media platforms when the show was aired, apologised for his comments on February 10. “I will follow due process and be available to all agencies,” he had said, adding that he and his family had received death threats.

While Allahbadia did not immediately respond to the police’s summons, he moved the Supreme Court to quash the FIRs lodged against him. While the apex court granted Allahbadia protection from arrest on February 18, it also criticised him for his comments on the show, saying his conduct showed a lack of responsibility and was condemnable.

Showrunner Raina, who was also named in both the Maharashtra and Assam FIRs, later removed all India’s Got Latent videos from his YouTube channel. In a social media post, he said he would “fully cooperate with all agencies to ensure their inquiries are concluded fairly”.