Alok Singh
Sharmistha Panoli, a law student and social media influencer, shared a video on Instagram in mid-May 2025. In the video, she made remarks about ‘Operation Sindoor‘ and criticised Bollywood celebrities for their silence. The video was deemed offensive to religious sentiments, leading to widespread backlash and threats against her. Though the video has some abusive words, she publicly apologised after the backlash.
Meanwhile, an FIR was filed at the Garden Reach Police Station in Kolkata. Panoli was arrested in Gurugram, Haryana, on May 31, 2025, and police claim that this action was taken after unsuccessful attempts to serve a legal notice. The charges against her were under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including promoting enmity between communities, offending religious sentiments, and making statements inciting unrest.
Panoli was brought before the Alipore Court in Kolkata, where the judge ordered his remand to judicial custody for 14 days. Several political leaders and the Bar Council of India criticised this act of arrest.
