NHRC issues notice to West Bengal DGP to ensure Sharmistha Panoli's safety
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to the Director general of police of West Bengal to ensure the safety of Sharmistha Panoli, a social media influencer and law student arrested over her alleged communal remarks linked to Operation Sindoor, said Priyank Kanoongo, a member of the human rights body.
The action was taken in view of the multiple 'rape and death threats' against Panoli, Kanoongo told ANI.
He also said that the human rights body received a complaint from the Legal Rights Observator alleging that proper legal procedures were not followed during Panoli's arrest.
Panoli was arrested from Haryana's Gurugram by the West Bengal Police on Friday, May 30, over her contentious post. She has been sent to judicial custody till June 13.
"We received a complaint from an organisation called Legal Rights Observatory regarding a law student, who was arrested by West Bengal Police from Haryana in the middle of the night over an allegedly objectionable social media post. The complaint alleges that proper legal procedures were not followed during her arrest and transit. It also states that the girl has received threats from radical Islamists, including rape and death threats," Kanoongo told ANI.
He also said that the NHRC has reached out to the Haryana government as well to determine whether all legal procedures were followed properly or not during Panoli's arrest before deciding the next course of action.
'We have issued a notice to the Chief Secretary and DGP of West Bengal, directing them to ensure her safety, especially as she is now in judicial custody. Additionally, we have sought clarification from the Haryana government on whether all legal protocols were followed. Based on the responses, we will decide the next course of action,' he said.
A police complaint has been filed against a 30-year-old Kolkata resident, whose May 14 complaint led to the arrest of a 22-year-old law student for a social media post from Gurugram, people familiar with the matter said on Monday.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
28 minutes ago
- India Today
Assam cops reach home of Wajahat Khan, complainant In Sharmistha Panoli case
After Kolkata police, Assam cops now seek to arrest Wajahat Khan in connection with a case filed against him for allegedly spreading hate speech and hurting religious sentiments. The development follows days after social media influencer Sharmishta Panoli was arrested on the basis of Khan's complaint over hate Assam Police team, comprising five personnel, arrived at Khan's Kolkata home this afternoon, but found no one present. A police source told India Today that Wajahat's father, Saadat Khan, was asked to appear before the investigating officer for questioning. However, he too was not at home when the team Khan has reportedly been missing since Sunday afternoon. His father told India Today that he has been untraceable since then. A senior Kolkata Police officer confirmed to the media outlet that Khan is "absconding" since the FIR was registered against him. This development comes as Khan, head of the Rashidi Foundation, faces growing legal heat across multiple states. An FIR was earlier registered at Garden Reach police station—the same location where he had filed the complaint against Panoli—based on a complaint by a trust named Shri Ram Swabhiman Parishad. The complaint accuses Khan of uploading "malicious and inflammatory" posts targeting religious Police had first summoned Khan on Monday for questioning at the Golf Green police station regarding the hate speech allegations. After he failed to appear, a second notice was served at his residence on Tuesday, asking him to report to the station the same day. He remained untraceable, police sources made headlines after his complaint led to the arrest of Sharmistha Panoli, who was picked up from Gurugram for allegedly making communal comments in a video criticizing Bollywood actors for their silence on Operation Sindoor. She was sent to judicial custody till June 13 by a Kolkata court on Saturday.
Time of India
37 minutes ago
- Time of India
Chinese support to Pakistan during Op Sindoor
S D Pradhan has served as chairman of India's Joint Intelligence Committee. He has also been the country's deputy national security adviser. He was chairman of the Task Force on Intelligence Mechanism (2008-2010), which was constituted to review the functioning of the intelligence agencies. He has taught at the departments of defence studies and history at the Punjabi University, Patiala. He was also a visiting professor at the University of Illinois, US, in the department of arms control and disarmament studies. The ministry of defence had utilized his services for the preparation of official accounts of the 1971 war and the counterinsurgency operations in the northeast. In the JIC/National Security Council secretariat, he was closely involved with the preparation of the reports of the Kargil Review Committee and the Group of Ministers on national security as also with the implementation of their recommendations. His publications include two books and several articles. LESS ... MORE With more information now available, it can be concluded that China provided critical military and strategic support to Pakistan during the four-day India-Pakistan conflict from May 7 to May 10, 2025 (Operation Sindoor). This assistance encompassed advanced weaponry, intelligence sharing, and influence operations for narrative building, favouring Pakistan. John Spencer has rightly stated that Pakistan fought as a proxy force, using Chinese weapons and systems, which failed, exposing the strategic hollowness of Islamabad. There are several credible inputs on the Chinese support to Pakistan. First, a Pakistani ex-army officer, Adil Raja, revealed that Munir ordered the Pahalgam attack after receiving the nod from China. Second, China's arms/systems were used in the operations. China is the largest source of Pakistani weapons (about 81%). The PL-15E missile landed in a village in Hoshiarpur without hitting its target, reflecting that they did not perform well. JF-17 fired Chinese CM-401 hypersonic missiles, which were used to strike Indian logistical depots and mechanised brigades near Pathankot and Gurdaspur. These were also neutralised by the Indian air defence system. Pakistan employed Chinese-made CH-4 drones for reconnaissance and precision strikes. Despite their capabilities, these drones were largely neutralised by India's advanced air defence systems, including the S-400. Third, China placed five satellites for exclusive use in observing Indian military assets. Reports suggest that China provided real-time battlefield surveillance support and advice to Pakistan and coordinates ground and air-level military operations. An Indian research group found out that China assisted Pakistan in optimising its defence systems to better detect the Indian Army's troop movements and deployments during the four-day conflict. It included reorganising Pakistan's radars and air defence systems and adjusting satellite coverage over India. Fourth, the detection of a banned Huawei satellite phone, with messaging services connected to China's Beidou satellite navigation system in Pahalgam after the terror attacks, revealed a close nexus between the Pak Army/terrorists and the Chinese armed forces. The above inputs indicated that Beijing's involvement was far more extensive than originally assessed. Fifth, China actively engaged in information warfare to support Pakistan's narrative. Chinese state media outlets echoed Pakistan's denials of involvement in the Pahalgam attack and suggested alternative narratives, including labelling the attack as a potential 'false flag' operation by India. Chinese-controlled social media platforms disseminated unverified claims of Pakistani military successes, such as the downing of Indian Rafale jets, aiming to undermine India's military reputation and promote Chinese weaponry. Chinese bloggers and wumao soldiers (5 cents) provided massive support to Pakistan in spreading disinformation and psychological warfare. They were receiving inputs directly from Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations. They exaggerated Indian losses, thereby helping to bolster the Pakistani narrative. They portrayed India as an aggressor. Sixth, China provided comprehensive diplomatic support to Pakistan at the UN Security Council, coordinating with Turkey and Bangladesh. At the UN Security Council committee 1267 on counter-terrorism, China blocked any mention of The Resistance Force (TRF), an offshoot of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, that initially took responsibility for the Pahalgam terror attacks. In sum, despite China's extensive support, Pakistan's military efforts during Operation Sindoor were largely unsuccessful. Indian forces effectively countered Pakistani offensives, dominating the escalation ladder, and India's indigenous defence technologies outperformed Chinese-supplied systems. India achieved its stated objective of destroying terrorist camps at nine places. Now, some details are available on the losses of aircraft by Pakistan during the operations. In the operation, the IAF destroyed at least six Pakistani fighter jets, two high-value surveillance aircraft, and one C-130 military transport aircraft. More than ten armed drones (UCAVs), several cruise missiles, and radar sites were also taken out during India's operation. Chinese HQ 9 and HQ 16 systems were destroyed by India's missiles. Interestingly, while India claimed to have hit 11 places in Pakistan, the latter now says India attacked at 19 places. Perhaps to project itself as a victim of India's action aimed at the civilian population. The Chinese platforms and defence systems were for the first time put to a real combat test. Their underperformance must be unsettling to China. Pakistan's losses of China's aircraft and air defence systems raise questions about the reliability of its defence equipment in real-world combat scenarios. This will have an impact on the Chinese export of weapons and systems. China is using Pakistan as a tool for its hegemonic and expansionist designs. Pakistan occupies the central position in the Chinese geopolitical calculus for two reasons. First, Pakistan's antipathy towards India allows China to use it as its proxy to keep pressure on India, which it considers an obstacle to achieving its regional ambitions. Second, Pakistan constitutes an important country in the Chinese string of pearls around India. Pakistan's geographical position allows it to have access to the Indian Ocean and thereby overcome its Malacca choke point problem. Besides, China may have viewed India's economic growth as a threat to its dwindling economy. The plan of some manufacturing units moving from China to India must have been unnerving. Hence, China may have asked Pakistan to escalate terror attacks in India to project that this country is not safe for investments. Given the above, China is likely to continue to provide support to Pakistan, which will encourage Pakistan to continue with its policy of bleeding India through a thousand cuts. India has done well by announcing its policy that it will react strongly in case of any terrorist attack, and would not differentiate between the state sponsors and terrorists and would not accept the nuclear bluff. India must maintain its firm retaliatory policy and continue to enhance global narrative building efforts. India needs to pay urgent attention to the dimension of cognitive warfare. This is a process to weaponise public opinion of targets and drive them to act in the initiator's interest. The victims of this process start supporting the adversary's narrative after their minds are manipulated. This can undermine national resilience. A comprehensive study should be made to develop a robust strategy to counter this menace. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
Nothing less than treason, says BJP on Rahul Gandhi's ‘surrender' remark
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday (June 4, 2025) accused Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi of insulting the armed forces and the country with his remarks aimed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The party described the remarks as 'nothing less than treason'. On Tuesday (June 3, 2025), Mr. Gandhi had alleged that Mr. Modi 'immediately surrendered' after receiving a phone call from U.S. President Donald Trump, referring to the decision to suspend Operation Sindoor on May 10. 'Rahul Gandhi's terming the unmatched valour and courage of the Indian armed forces a 'surrender' is not only unfortunate but also a grave insult to them, the nation, and 140 crore Indians. If any Pakistani had said this, we would have laughed at him. However, after the manner in which Operation Sindoor wreaked havoc in Pakistan, no one from Pakistan -- from its army to even its Prime Minister -- dared to say this, but Rahul Gandhi has said this! This is nothing less than treason,' said BJP chief J.P. Nadda through a post on X. Mr. Nadda said: 'The Indian armed forces penetrated 300 km into Pakistan, destroyed 11 of its airbases, demolished nine terrorist bases, and killed more than 150 terrorists. A wailing Pakistan has been telling the world that the Indian armed forces destroyed everything at the 18 places they attacked, and Rahul Gandhi talks about the 'surrender' of the country!' 'Rahul Gandhi should know that the success of Operation Sindoor was not announced by the government or any BJP spokesperson, but by senior officers of the Indian armed forces,' he said, adding that the operation was a declaration of their bravery and valour. 'In reality, those whose policies have been of surrender cannot think of anything beyond this -- Isn't it so, Rahul Gandhi?,' asked the Union Minister. 'Rahul Gandhi, you may have surrendered, your party may have surrendered, your leaders may have surrendered -- your history has been like this -- but India never surrenders. 'Surrender' is in the dictionary of your party Congress, it is in your DNA... you should remember the tenure of your party's governments and how you 'surrendered' in history,' he said. Mr. Nadda said: 'You surrendered to terrorism, surrendered in 'Sharm el-Sheikh'; surrendered at the table in Shimla after winning the 1971 war; surrendered in the Indus Water Treaty; surrendered Haji Pir Pass; surrendered 160-km area of Chhamb sector; surrendered in the 1962 war; surrendered in 1948; and even surrendered to the Muslim League at the time of Independence of the country.' Earlier, at a press conference, BJP MP and spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said Mr. Gandhi's comments reflected a 'sick and dangerous' mindset and accused the Congress leader of speaking in support of Pakistan. Responding to a query, he said: 'On the issue of the U.S. President's statement, the Government of India has clarified a number of times that there was no-third party mediation.'
