Tanmay Bhat and Gursmiran Khamba
Popular stand-up comedian Tanmay Bhat will 'step away from his association with AlB', the statement published from the YouTube channel All India Bakchod reads. It also stated that Gursimran Khamba will be on a 'temporary leave until there is more clarity on the matter'. The action has been taken amidst the raging Me Too movement in India. While a woman accused Bhat of not taking action on her complaints against Utsav Chakraborty, an ex-AIB member, Khamba is also facing certain allegations.
''We have been closely monitoring the sequence of events on social media around the allegations against AIB and also against our co-founder and CEO, Tanmay Bhat. We cannot overlook Tanmay's role,'' the statement reads. It further states that Tanmay will not be involved in day to day functioning of the popular channel.
After the sexual harassment allegations against Chakraborty, AIB wrote a long apology on its social media accounts mentioning details about the incident. AIB also made it clear that despite knowing about unprofessional behaviour of Utsav, neither Tanmay Bhat nor AIB cut off its ties with the comedian. ''I should've ended ties then, and I didn't, and it is my fault. I'm truly sorry. I should've acted stronger,'' Bhat said.
As two of its senior partners step down from the organisation, AIB's statement further says, ''truthfully, we do not know what this means for the future of AIB or whether there is one''.
As far as Khamba's case is concerned, the comedian has published a statement in which he denies violating consent. "I am aware of the person who's stated the incident... in 2015 we had hooked up consensually multiple times. But I categorically deny the incident mentioned in October and December. I was not forceful,'' his statement reads.
A woman, who 'hooked up two-three times consensually'' with the comedian alleged that he repeatedly tried to ''make out'' with her while hanging out. ''He lay down on top of me on the couch, I had to physically shove him away, turn my face or push his. He would then stop. And we would hang out, ignoring the entire thing. I continued being friends with him," she said. She also accused him of verbally abusing her to which Khamba said that he apologises for his ''uncalled behaviour'' but again insisted that there wasn't any violation of consent,
"It is true that I developed feelings for her while she was dating someone else. During that time given our friendship and history I felt rejected and was angry and did not behave appropriately at all. It had become a toxic relationship and I'd like to apologise unconditionally for it like I had done in the past,'' Khamba said.
On a related note, AIB has decided to de-list all videos featuring Utsav Chakraborty.
More stories and picture galleries
For all latest news and updates, stay tuned to our Facebook page
