‘Santa Banta’ Jokes Under Supreme Court Scanner

Santa Banta jokes under scanner from the Supreme Court.

Prepare your case well, says the SC bench.

‘Santa Banta jokes came under the lens of the Supreme Court on Friday which agreed to hear a PIL seeking direction to ban websites displaying cracks on Sardars and projecting them in poor light.

<p>This (Sikh) community is known for great sense of humour and they also enjoy such jokes. You must have gone through the jokes of Khushwant Singh... This is only an amusement. Why do you want it to be stopped?...Prepare your case well. We will hear you.</p>

<p>Bench comprising Justices T S Thakur and V Gopala Gowda</p>

A woman lawyer Harvinder Chowdhary filed the PIL in which she said that there are more than 5,000 websites which display jokes on sardars projecting the members of the community in poor light.

<p>All the jokes relating to Sikh community should be stopped. My children are humiliated and feel embarrassed and they don’t want to suffix Singh and Kaur after their name.</p>

<p> Harvinder Chowdhary, the lawyer who filed PIL.</p>

Chowdhury has sought direction to Telecom Ministry to filter websites which target the Sikh community as it violates sections 153A and 153B of the IPC.