When Smiling Gets You Accused: Jenny Slatten and Sumit Shut Down “Fake ALS” Rumors From Goa

A beach vacation. A few photos of a couple smiling in the sun. For most people, that’s a memory. For Jenny Slatten and Sumit Singh, it became a trial. Days after the 90 Day Fiancé couple traveled to Goa, India, the internet lit up with an ugly accusation: that Jenny is faking her ALS diagnosis — and spending donated money on a “luxury vacation.” This week, the couple fired back — and Sumit’s words were the kind that silence a room.

“Keep Your Thoughts to Yourself”

Jenny and Sumit have heard it all before — the GoFundMe criticism, the snide comments, even false rumors that spiraled far beyond reality, including claims she was bedridden or had passed away. Every one of them has been debunked: Jenny is alive, and she is fighting. But the Goa trip crossed a line, and Sumit spoke directly to the haters: keep your thoughts to yourself.

According to reports, the couple traveled to Goa — a small state on India’s southwestern coast — hoping a change of pace would help them both. What they got instead was a fresh wave of “fake illness” claims.

“Vacation Is Also a Mental Treatment”

Then Sumit said the thing that should have ended the debate: “Vacation is also a mental treatment. [Jenny] still can smile at the beach. She still can laugh with me. She still can enjoy the breeze on the beach. She should be allowed to do that without anyone having any kind of issue with that.”

He didn’t hide the hard parts, either. “Struggling with ALS [for] a long time, it’s not easy for Jenny. It’s not easy for me either,” he said. “Right now, Jenny can stand. She can walk a few steps. She can even try to talk with a lot of effort.” Her speech, he explained, is the most affected — and she spends most of her time in a wheelchair because of neck problems.

“She Is Losing Ability and Freedom”

Sumit’s most devastating line wasn’t about the trip at all. “[ALS] keeps your mind wide awake, but it takes your body one at a time… piece by piece… She is the same person, but she is losing ability and freedom.”

That is the cruelty of Jenny’s diagnosis — bulbar-onset ALS, which attacks speech and swallowing first. According to Sumit, doctors say patients with this form have three to five years: “Whatever we have today is not going to remain the same tomorrow.” That sentence, more than any beach photo, explains why they went to Goa at all.

Two Sides of the Fandom

The fandom has split down the middle. On one side: defenders who say a woman with three to five years left has earned every sunset she can get. On the other: critics who argue that accepting donations comes with an obligation of transparency — that money given for treatment shouldn’t fund getaways without answers.

It’s a fair question wrapped in an unfair accusation. The GoFundMe was started by family and friends to help cover treatment costs. Questioning how it’s used is one thing; calling her illness “fake” because she dared to smile on a beach is another entirely. Jenny has answered the money critics before — telling them they can have the money, and she’ll take their health.

Jenny Slatten is still here. Still smiling. Still fighting a disease that takes a little more every day. The only question left is for the rest of us: when someone facing a terminal illness takes a vacation — especially with donated money in the picture — is rest a privilege they’ve earned, or does accepting help come with an obligation to justify every moment of joy? Where do you stand? Tell us in the comments.