The Bombay High Court has dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that expressed concern about possible coercive steps by the Maharashtra government against individuals who shared a comedy clip of stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra. In the video, Kamra had allegedly referred to Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as “gaddar.”
The PIL was filed by Harshvardhan Navnath Khandekar. He argued that there must be equal treatment under the law for both politicians and citizens. The plea raised questions about whether ordinary citizens would face harsher treatment for sharing the same content that a politician might not be punished for.
During the hearing, the petitioner’s lawyer highlighted that both the Chief Minister and Home Minister of Maharashtra had made public statements indicating strict action would be taken against comedians engaging in such performances. The counsel claimed this created an atmosphere of fear, where the law could be applied unequally.
“The law must be enforced equally on politicians and citizens alike,” the petitioner’s lawyer stated.
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The petitioner also mentioned that the venue where Kamra had performed was demolished by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) citing structural violations. He pointed out that similar action was not taken against other illegal constructions, raising concerns about selective application of rules.
It was also submitted that if the content of the show was considered defamatory, then legal action could be initiated under Section 222 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), but the law should not be misused to target individuals arbitrarily.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice M.S. Karnik questioned the intent behind the petition. The court specifically asked the petitioner to explain why he was taking up the cause of Kunal Kamra.
In response, the petitioner clarified that he was not defending Kamra or his speech. Instead, he said the concern was about possible state action against common people who may have watched or shared the video clip on social media.
However, the State government’s lawyer strongly opposed the petition. He argued that the request to restrain police from filing any FIRs was baseless. He also confirmed that no action had been taken by the state against those who shared or retweeted the video clip.
The State also informed the court that FIRs had only been registered against individuals involved in damaging the studio where Kamra had performed. Furthermore, it was noted that Kamra himself had approached the High Court seeking quashing of FIRs filed directly against him.
After hearing both sides, the bench noted that the petitioner had not presented any actual cases where the state had taken coercive action against those who shared the video. The court concluded that there was no merit in the PIL.
“In the absence of any proof of coercive action, we see no reason to entertain this petition,” the Court observed.“There is no record of any FIR being filed against individuals who shared or reposted the clip,” the State counsel said.
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Accordingly, the PIL was dismissed. However, the bench granted the petitioner the liberty to take appropriate legal recourse in the future if necessary.
The matter was listed under the title Harshvardhan Navnath Khandekar vs State Of Maharashtra (CRPIL/1/2025).
