The BJP alleged that the arrest of the 22-year-old regulation pupil was ‘selective enforcement’ and accused the #Kolkata Police of appearing in ‘uncharacteristic haste’
Sharmishta Panoli.
The #Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lashed out in opposition to the ruling #Trinamool Congress (TMC) within the state alleging that the arrest of the 22-year-old regulation pupil was “selective enforcement” and the #Kolkata Police acted in “uncharacteristic haste”.
“Sharmistha Panoli, just 22 years old, has been arrested and sent to 14-day judicial custody over a video she had already deleted and publicly apologised for on May 15. There have been no reports of communal unrest linked to her remarks, yet the #Kolkata Police is acting with uncharacteristic haste. This is no longer about law and order — it is about selective enforcement,” Amit Malviya, BJP’s IT cell head, wrote on X.
She was arrested from Gurugram in Haryana by the #Kolkata Police late on Friday evening and was delivered to Kolkata. She was produced earlier than the court docket on Saturday. The court docket despatched her to judicial custody until June 13.
“Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee herself has made far more divisive statements, which have had far-reaching consequences, including tragic loss of life and destruction of property on multiple occasions. Will the law be applied to her with the same urgency? India is watching. This isn’t just a case in #West Bengal — it reflects how a young Hindu woman is being targeted to appease a vote bank. Justice must not be politically convenient,” Malviya wrote.
Geert Wilder, Dutch Parliament member and the chief of the right-wing Party for Freedom, additionally took to social media to increase his help to Panoli.
“Free the brave Sharmishta Panoli! It’s a disgrace for the freedom of speech that she was arrested. Don’t punish her for speaking the truth about Pakistan and Muhammad. Help her @narendramodi,” he wrote.
Pawan Kalyan, deputy chief minister of Andhra Pradesh additionally slammed the TMC over the arrest whereas asking the police to behave justly.
“During Operation Sindoor, Sharmistha, a law student, spoke out, her words regrettable and hurtful to some. She owned her mistake, deleted the video and apologized. The WB Police swiftly acted, taking action against Sharmistha. But what about the deep, searing pain inflicted upon millions when elected leaders, MPs of TMC, mock Sanatana Dharma? Where is the outrage when our faith is called ‘Gandha Dharm’? Where is their apology? Where is their swift arrest?” Kalyan wrote on X.
Panoli later deleted the put up and issued a public apology, however by then, an FIR had already been filed in Kolkata.
HT obtained in contact with not less than three senior TMC leaders. None of them commented on the developments.
The #Kolkata Police nevertheless refuted allegations that Panoli was arrested unlawfully or the police acted in a haste.
“All legal procedures were duly adhered to. All attempts were made to serve notice, but she was found absconding on every occasion. Consequently, a warrant of arrest was issued by the competent court, following which she was apprehended lawfully from Gurgaon. She was thereafter produced before the appropriate magistrate and granted transit remand as per due process of law,” the #Kolkata Police wrote on X
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