Popular YouTuber Ashish Chanchlani has approached the Supreme Court of India seeking to either quash or transfer an FIR registered against him in Guwahati to Mumbai. The case relates to allegations of promoting obscenity in an online show, where podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia is the key accused.
Chanchlani’s plea is scheduled to be heard by a Supreme Court bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice N Kotiswar Singh on Friday.
Details of the FIR Against Chanchlani
The FIR was lodged at the Cyber Police Station, Guwahati Crime Branch, Assam, following a complaint filed by an individual on February 10. The charges have been filed under various laws, including:
– Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS)
– Information Technology Act
– Cinematograph Act
– Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act
Chanchlani’s Legal Argument
The petition was drafted by advocate Shubham Kulshreshtha and filed by advocate Manju Jaitley. In his plea, Chanchlani has requested the quashing of the FIR on the grounds that it was registered after another FIR in Mumbai related to the same issue. “Quash the FIR bearing No. 03 of 2025 registered at Cyber PS Police Commissionerate, Guwahati Crime Branch, Assam, as it was registered later,” the plea stated. As an alternative, Chanchlani has asked for the FIR to be transferred to Mumbai since an earlier FIR (No. 05 of 2025) had already been registered at the Mumbai Police Station Nodal Cyber before the Guwahati FIR.
Interim Bail Granted by Gauhati High Court
On Tuesday, the Gauhati High Court granted interim bail to Chanchlani while hearing his anticipatory bail petition. The court has directed him to appear before the investigating officer within 10 days. His legal team argued that he had not made any controversial statements during the show and that the allegations in the FIR were against the co-accused persons only.
Supreme Court Grants Protection to Ranveer Allahbadia
The controversy began when podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia made controversial comments on the YouTube show ‘India’s Got Latent’. The Supreme Court had earlier provided interim protection from arrest to Allahbadia on February 18, but criticized his remarks, calling them “vulgar” and stating that he had a “dirty mind”, which put society to shame.
