New Delhi, March 5: The Entertainers Cricket League (ECL) after a phenomenal debut season, is set to return with its second edition, which will be broadcast live on Prasar Bharati’s Waves OTT platform.

It will be starting from March 5 and running until March 16. The influencer-driven cricket event promises to be more competitive, with 150 top digital influencers taking center stage.

The tournament will kick off with a grand opening ceremony at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Delhi. The inauguration ceremony will be led by the Chief Minister of Delhi Rekha Gupta on Wednesday.

The first match will have a clash between Haryanvi Hunters and Rajasthan Rangers. This year’s edition sees the addition of three new teams, expanding the competition and raising the stakes. The new entrants are the Rajasthan Rangers, led by popular YouTuber Zayn Saifi; Kolkata Superstars, captained by Pushkar Raj Thakur; and Chennai Smashers, with Mahesh Keshwala at the helm.

They will join returning teams, which include heavyweights like Munawar Faruqui, Abhishek Malhan, Elvish Yadav, Sonu Sharma, and Anurag Dwivedi.

Prasar Bharati CEO Gaurav Dwivedi shared: “We are thrilled to bring the Entertainers Cricket League live to our viewers on Waves OTT! This season is set to ignite an electrifying showcase of talent, fierce competition, and unparalleled fan energy.”

“With record participation and an unstoppable wave of enthusiasm, we are gearing up for a tournament like never before, and we can’t wait for the action to unfold,” Dwivedi said.

“We’re thrilled to have Waves, Prasar Bharati’s OTT platform, as our sponsor for ECL Season 2. Their commitment to bringing diverse and engaging content aligns perfectly with our vision for the league,” Himanshu Chandnani, Founder, Entertainers Cricket League.

“Having Waves as a sponsor for ECL Season 2 is a great addition. Their support strengthens the league, and we’re looking forward to an exciting season ahead.” – Anil Kumar, Founder, Entertainers Cricket League.

The ECL 2025 final is scheduled for March 16.

Guwahati, March 4: YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia is set to appear before the Assam Police in Guwahati on Tuesday in the case related to his controversial comments on the stage of ‘India Got Latent’ show that has attracted massive backlash for the podcaster.

A case against Allahbadia was registered in Guwahati and he was served summons to appear before the Assam Police here.

The Guwahati Crime Branch last week questioned another YouTuber Ashish Chanchalani, who has also been embroiled in the controversy for his comments made during an episode of ‘India’s Got Latent’ show.

The interrogation lasted several hours after the YouTuber arrived at the Crime Branch office.

“YouTuber Ashish Chanchlani showed up for interrogation at the Crime Branch. He has complied with our inquiry. We will phone him if necessary, but we are not currently calling him again. We have not yet received a response from other people connected to the investigation. They will receive new summonses shortly,” Guwahati’s Joint Police Commissioner Ankur Jain told reporters here.

When Allahbadia made controversial comments on the show hosted by comedian Samay Raina, Chanchlani was listed in the Assam FIR.

Due to his remarks regarding parents and sex in an episode of the show, Allahbadia, better known by his stage name BeerBiceps, faced severe criticism and complaints.

Chanchlani has pleaded that the FIR filed at the Guwahati Crime Branch, Guwahati Police Commissionerate’s Cyber Police Station be quashed.

As the Maharashtra FIR was filed first, the YouTuber requested that the Guwahati FIR be transferred to Mumbai. While considering Chanchlani’s anticipatory bail motion, the Gauhati High Court granted him temporary relief on February 18 and instructed him to appear in person before the investigating officer within ten days.

The lawyer for Chanchlani contended that their client made no statements on the show and that the FIR’s accusations were limited to the co-accused. Under certain provisions of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhtia, Information Technology Act, Cinematograph Act, and Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, Guwahati Police filed a formal complaint against Chanchlani on February 10.

New Delhi, March 3: The Supreme Court on Monday permitted popular YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia to resume airing his podcast on the condition that he will maintain the “standards of decency and morality”.

Allahbadia and several other YouTubers, including Ashish Chanchlani and Apoorva Mukhija, have been embroiled in the controversy for vulgar and crass comments made during an episode of Samay Raina’s ‘India’s Got Latent’ show.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N. Kotiswar Singh relaxed an earlier condition which had prohibited Allahbadia or his associates from airing any show on YouTube or any other audio/video visual mode of communication till further orders.

During the hearing, the Justice Kant-led Bench asked the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, the second highest law officer of the Centre, to consider regulating the content in online media.

“We don’t want any regulatory regime which leads to censorship, but it can’t be a free for all,” it said.

The apex court clarified that Allahbadia’s shows should not comment upon the proceedings which are sub-judice.

Earlier, on February 18, the top court had stayed Allahbadia’s arrest subject to the condition that he would join the investigation, as and when summoned by the Investigating Officers.

“The interim protection against arrest is granted further subject to the condition that the petitioner will extend full cooperation to the ongoing investigation,” it had ordered.

The Supreme Court had added that no further FIR would be registered against Allahbadia on the basis of the episode aired on the show ‘India’s Got Latent’, for which two-three FIRs have already been registered.

Amid the controversy, Samay Raina had removed all videos of the show from YouTube, asserting that his intention was only to entertain and make people laugh.

Several complaints seeking legal action have been filed against popular YouTubers Samay Raina, Ranveer Allahabadia, Ashish Chanchlani, and Apoorva Mukhija over allegedly obscene and offensive remarks about parents in the comedy show ‘India’s Got Latent’.

As the legal proceedings unfold, the incident has sparked a broader debate about the limits of comedy and the responsibility of content creators on digital platforms.