KATHMANDU, AUGUST 29
Kathmandu District Court has remanded stand-up comedian Apoorwa Kshitiz Singh to 10 days of judicial custody allowing police to carry out investigation into the charge of having made derogatory comments against Newars in his comedy show.
Singh was arrested yesterday after dozens of people from Newar community reached the Metropolitan Police Range, Kathmandu, to file a case against him. Singh has been accused of passing racially derogatory comments that hurt the sentiments of Newari people in one of his recent stand-up comedy show.
The video of the show was posted in YouTube channel which was widely seen largely after being severely criticised by the Newari people. The comedian had made jokes about Newari tradition, especially about the accent of Newari people, their food and culture in the comedy show.
A short clip of the video was also widely spread on Facebook where the comedian faced the wrath of the native people. Many demanded action against Singh. They also passed similar derogatory comments at Singh and the Madhesi people.
Shortly after circulation of the video in social media, many demanded legal action against him. Eventually, police arrested him yesterday.
Meanwhile, comedian Singh also removed the video, but it did not stop people from showing bitterness against him.
He later apologised on Facebook saying that he made the mistake in ignorance and that he deserved another chance.
"I made a mistake while trying to make people laugh. I didn't intend to hurt the sentiments of the Newari community. I did not do proper research, I will examine it carefully in the future. I apologise to everyone," Singh said.
A version of this article appears in the print on August 30, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.
