The Supreme Court of India has stepped into the legal controversy surrounding standup comedian Pranit More by issuing formal notices to the Union government as well as the state administrations of Haryana and Maharashtra. A judicial bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V. Mohana considered the performer's formal request seeking consolidation of numerous criminal complaints registered across multiple jurisdictions into a single proceeding.
Defense Submissions Before the Apex Bench
Advocates representing the comedian submitted before the judges that the allegations leveled across different police stations are essentially identical in substance and arise from the exact same event. Counsel argued that running parallel investigations and trials across different regional forums would cause unnecessary prejudice, urging that the cases be grouped together. The bench was also informed that the entertainer had already issued a public apology regarding the episode and remains fully willing to undergo lawful trial proceedings.
The legal counsel further pointed out that the disputed internet recording had been deleted from digital channels prior to the registration of any formal police complaints. Additionally, the lawyer stated that the performer's promotional team had uploaded the recording without securing prior clearance from him. After taking these preliminary submissions into consideration, the apex court directed the relevant governments to submit their formal responses.
Stage Interaction and Derogatory Remarks
The controversy traces its roots to a live standup presentation staged in Gurugram, where a spectator identified as Himanshu Jangra began recounting a personal dining outing. The attendee mentioned having paid approximately 370 rupees on a meal of chicken biryani during the encounter, after which he uttered remarks widely condemned as derogatory toward women.
In the widely circulated video, the man implied that spending that sum entitled him to physical intimacy in return. He even suggested recovering the monetary cost when the companion asked to be dropped back home. Instead of addressing the offensive premise, the onstage comic was seen laughing at the remarks and remarking that it represented 'peak Gurugram content,' an exchange that triggered immediate widespread backlash.
Regulatory Outrage and Parallel Police Cases
As public anger mounted, the National Commission for Women intervened by issuing summons to both the comedian and the attendee who made the remarks. The commission also instructed Haryana's Director General of Police to initiate strict legal steps, noting that the recorded remarks trivialized critical concepts like consent and physical boundaries. Consequently, law enforcement authorities in Gurugram registered a formal criminal complaint.
Simultaneously, the Maharashtra Cyber Police registered their own first information report naming More, Jangra, and another individual. With parallel police proceedings underway across different regions over a single incident, the comedian approached the country's highest judicial forum seeking procedural relief and consolidation of the matters.
