NEW DELHI: Kolkata Police defended the arrest of Instagram influencer Sharmistha Panoli, saying that legal action was taken not for her political views but for allegedly sharing a video that insulted religious beliefs and promoted communal disharmony.In a detailed statement posted on X, Kolkata Police dismissed claims circulating online that Panoli was targeted for expressing nationalist sentiments. “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 statement read.The case against Panoli was registered on 15 May at Garden Reach Police Station. According to the police, the video in question was considered “insulting to the religious belief of a class of citizen of India and amounted to promoting disharmony and hatred between different communities.” The police said they had acted under relevant sections of the newly implemented Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).Repeated attempts to serve legal notice to Panoli reportedly failed, with the police saying she was “absconding.” “Several attempts were made to serve notice u/s 35 of BNSS to the accused but every time she was found absconding,” Kolkata Police said. A court then issued a warrant for her arrest. She was apprehended from Gurugram, Haryana, during daytime hours and later presented before a magistrate, who granted transit remand. She was eventually sent to judicial custody.“Hate speech targeting any religious figure or community or any class of citizens of India which has potential to incite disharmony and hatred between different communities is a punishable offence… Hate speech & abusive language should not be misconstrued as freedom of speech & expression as enshrined in Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution,” the police said.Panoli, a 22-year-old law student from Pune, had deleted the video and issued a public apology on May 15. Her arrest on Friday night triggered political controversy and public debate. Actress and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut called the move excessive and said, “She should be released soon because she is a very young woman. She has her whole career and life ahead of her.”BJP’s Amit Malviya also criticised the arrest, accusing the state government of “appeasement politics” and questioned why no action was taken against chief minister Mamata Banerjee for her own allegedly divisive comments.
