The Supreme Court has sought responses on a plea seeking the consolidation of multiple FIRs registered against stand-up comedian Pranit More in connection with remarks allegedly made during one of his comedy performances.
A Bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice N. Kotiswar Singh was hearing a petition concerning criminal proceedings initiated in different jurisdictions, including Maharashtra and Haryana, over the controversy surrounding an alleged reference to “₹370 biryani”.
The petitioner, Himanshu Jangra, has approached the Supreme Court seeking appropriate directions to prevent the continuation of parallel criminal proceedings arising from substantially similar allegations. The plea contends that the registration of multiple FIRs in different States over the same alleged speech subjects the accused to repetitive investigations and proceedings, besides creating the possibility of conflicting outcomes.
The proceedings relate to allegations concerning the comedian’s purported remarks during a performance, with complaints invoking provisions relating to obscene content and allegedly objectionable speech.
The petitioner has urged the Supreme Court to exercise its jurisdiction to bring the proceedings before a single competent forum, contending that the continuation of separate investigations based on the same factual foundation would amount to an abuse of the criminal process.
The plea raises broader questions concerning the permissible limits of multiple criminal proceedings arising from a single public performance, particularly where complaints are instituted in different territorial jurisdictions. It also brings into focus the procedural safeguards available to persons facing several FIRs founded upon substantially identical allegations.
The Supreme Court’s intervention will now depend on the responses of the concerned authorities and the Court’s assessment of whether the FIRs arise from the same transaction and whether their simultaneous continuation would result in an avoidable multiplicity of proceedings.
The matter will be considered further after the respondents place their respective stands before the Court.
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