KOLKATA Police have dismissed criticisms that they have “unlawfully” arrested a 22-year-old female Instagram influencer for allegedly uploading a video with communal comments, and claimed that all legal procedures were followed. They defended the arrest of influencer Sharmistha Panoli saying that the case was “duly investigated and adhering to legal procedures”. “Kolkata Police acted lawfully according to the procedure established by law. The accused was not arrested for expressing patriotism or for personal belief; legal actions were taken for sharing offensive content which promotes hatred among the communities,” Kolkata Police posted on Facebook on Sunday. The Kolkata Police had arrested the woman for allegedly uploading a video with communal comments, claiming Bollywood actors were silent on Operation Sindoor.

 

“Some social media accounts are spreading false information that Kolkata Police has unlawfully arrested a law student for opposing Pakistan. This narrative is mischievous and misleading,” the Kolkata Police added. A case against the woman was lodged at the Garden Reach Police Station on May 15 based on allegations that she posted a video that Kolkata Police claimed: “was insulting to the religious belief of a class of citizen of India and amounted to promoting disharmony and hatred between different communities”. The case was registered under the appropriate section of Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The accused woman, booked under relevant sections for promoting enmity between different groups, malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings, apart from intentional insult, provoking breach of peace, has been sent to judicial custody till June 13 after her bail petition was rejected by a Kolkata court.

 

BJP West Bengal president Sukanta Majumdar criticised the Kolkata Police for their “overactiveness” in arresting the woman for allegedly posting the video. The BJP leader has alleged that the arrest was made “not for justice, but for appeasement” keeping in mind the “vote-bank vendetta”. “Sharmistha Panoli, 22, a law student, arrested for a now-deleted video and a public apology. No riots. No unrest. Yet Mamata Banerjee’s police acted overnight — not for justice, but for appeasement. But when TMC leaders insult Sanatan Dharma… mock Maha Kumbh and push communal poison — there’s no FIR, no arrest, no apology. This is not justice. This is vote-bank vendetta,” Majumdar posted.