Maharashtra legal dept yet to submit report on Tanmay Bhat video

After the video showing a fictitious chat between the two went viral, the Mumbai police commissioner Dattatray Padsalgikar asked the Special Branch (SB) to probe into the incident

The police investigation into standup comedian Tanmay Bhat snapchat videos mocking cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and singer Lata Mangeshkar is still underway. The police are still awaiting the state legal department’s opinion to decide if a case can be registered.

The police had blocked two links from YouTube, which gave access to standup comedian Tanmay Bhat snapchat videos mocking cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and singer Lata Mangeshkar.(File photo)

After the video showing a fictitious chat between the two went viral, the Mumbai police commissioner Dattatray Padsalgikar asked the Special Branch (SB) to probe into the incident.

The SB officials sought the legal department’s opinion and a report from them is still awaited.

“We are yet to decide on whether a case can be registered. We are waiting for legal opinion,” said a senior police officer.

Any action including recording of Bhat’s statement, if need be, will be initiated only if the case is registered, officers said.

Investigators said the final report will be based on the SB’s and legal department’s opinion. If they conclude that the act can be prosecuted, a case would be registered with a police station. 

The Mumbai police are also in the process of ascertaining the number of shares of Bhat’s snapchat video that he had posted on his Facebook page.

The police had blocked two links from YouTube, which gave access to the video. They have also sought to block the link on Bhat’s Facebook page.

After the video went viral, complaints were filed at the Shivaji Park police station and the Bandra-Kurla Complex police stations, besides a complaint to the Mumbai police chief.