"All Eyes On Sharmistha": Arrested Influencer Gets Dutch Support
New Delhi:
Sharmishta Panoli, a 22-year-old influencer arrested by Kolkata Police for communally-charged social media posts, has received support from nearly 7,000 km away. Geert Wilders, a member of the Dutch Parliament and the leader of the right-wing Party for Freedom, has said the influencer's arrest is a "disgrace for freedom of speech" and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure she is freed.
"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," Wilders said in a post on X. The photo with the post read, "All eyes on Sharmistha."
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! @AmyMek #Sharmishta #IStandwithSharmishta #ReleaseSharmistha #FreeSharmishta pic.twitter.com/YhGSLhuyr2
— Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) May 31, 2025
Kolkata Police yesterday arrested Sharmistha Panoli, a 22-year-old law student, over social media videos in which she used abusive and communally-charged language and also targeted Bollywood actors for not speaking out during Operation Sindoor, India's counterstrike to the Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 innocents dead.
The influencer's arrest has sparked a political row, with the BJP and its allies targeting the Mamata Banerjee government in Bengal. The FIR against Sharmistha Panoli, filed after a complaint in Kolkata, invokes Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections linked to promoting enmity on grounds of religion, deliberate acts to outrage religious feelings and intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace. She was produced in court and remanded in judicial custody for 14 days.
Jana Kalyan Sena leader Pawan Kalyan took to X to comment on the student's arrest.
"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?," he asked.
Targeting the BJP, Ms Banerjee has said the party was trying to incite "communal riots through divisive politics" in Bengal and asserted that its "ganda dharma" was contrary to the true principles of Hinduism.
Sharing a video of the Trinamool Congress chief's remarks, Mr Kalyan said, "Blasphemy must be condemned, always! Secularism isn't a shield for some and a sword for others. It must be a two-way street. West Bengal Police, the nation is watching. Act justly for all."
Kolkata Police have said 'certain social media narratives suggesting an unlawful arrest of a law student are factually incorrect and misleading".
"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. We urge all concerned to refrain from spreading unverified or speculative content and to rely on authentic sources for information," it said in a post on X.
Soon after her post sparked an uproar, the law student deleted it and issued an apology.
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