Latest news with #WazahatKhan
The Hindu
6 hours ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
Wazahat Khan, the man who filed FIR against influencer Sharmistha Panoli, arrested in Kolkata
Wazahat Khan, whose complaint led to influencer Sharmistha Panoli's arrest on May 30, was himself arrested on the night of June 9 from Kolkata's Amherst Street area. BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul had also registered a case against Mr Khan last week. Multiple FIRs were filed against Mr Khan, including one in Assam, for 'allegedly spreading hatred on social media and hurting religious sentiments,' according to Kolkata Police officials. The 29-year-old Wazahat Khan has been booked under Bhartiya Nyay Sanghita's Sections 196(1)(a)/299/352/353(1)(c). He was absconding for the past 10 days. He is set to produced in a city court on Tuesday (June 10). Police had conducted multiple raids at Digha and Howrah based on leads. But Mr Khan was finally arrested from the Amherst Street area in relation to a case registered with the Golf Green Police Station. When Wazahat was absconding, his father shared concerns that his son was under threat. 'He was getting multiple calls throughout the day. He left home and his phone is switched off. We have not been able to find him since then, we are really worried,' Sahadat Khan, Mr Wazahat's father said. Reacting to Mr Khan's arrest, BJP State president and MP, Sukanta Majumdar said that the Mamata Banerjee government 'orchestrated his arrest through her subservient Kolkata Police to ensure his safe and protected custody under the State's wing.' A team of Assam Police was also present in West Bengal looking for Mr Khan based on the case registered against him in Assam. There were social media rumours that the Kolkata Police was not cooperating with their Assam counterparts. 'Kolkata Police strongly refutes the misleading claim being circulated on social media suggesting non-cooperation with Assam Police,' the Kolkata Police officials said in a statement. 'Wazahat Khan's arrest, immediately following the departure of Assam Police from Kolkata, is nothing but a textbook example of Mamata Banerjee's age-old politics of appeasement,' Mr Majumdar wrote on social media handle X. He further accused that this was a blatant abuse of State machinery by the CM to protect notorious criminals. On Friday (June 6, 2025) afternoon, Ms Panoli was set free from Kolkata's Alipore jail. She was granted bail in the hate speech case by the Calcutta High Court on Thursday (June 5, 2025) for a bond of ₹10,000. The court also asked the police to offer her protection because her counsel stated that the young woman was receiving rape and death threats after her arrest. This came after Ms Panoli posted a video on social media and made communal comments and made claims about Operation Sindoor which the Kolkata Police noted as 'hate speech' and asked people not to confuse that with 'freedom of speech'. She did this as a reaction to the Pahalgam attack which left at least 26 people dead in Jammu and Kashmir.
Hindustan Times
20 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Wazahat Khan, man who filed complaint against Sharmishta Panoli, arrested in Kolkata for hate speech
Kolkata Police has arrested Wazahat Khan, a key complainant against influencer Sharmishta Panoli, on Monday. As per reports, the man was arrested in relation to the hate speech case. As per Kolkata Police, Khan was arrested from Amherst Street PS area in connection with a case registered against him at Golf Green Police Station 'He has been booked under BNS Sections 196(1)(a)/299/352/353(1)(c) for allegedly spreading hatred on social media and hurting religious sentiments,' news agency ANI stated.
India Gazette
5 days ago
- Politics
- India Gazette
"Justice has been served," says BJP's Suvendu Adhikari after Sharmistha Panoli gets interim bail
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], June 5 (ANI): After Calcutta High Court granted interim bail to law student Sharmistha Panoli, West Bengal Assembly Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday said, 'justice has been served today'. In a post on X, Suvendu Adhikari said, 'Justice has been served today - Sharmistha Panoli, a law student, aged about 22 years, has been released on interim bail by the Hon'ble High Court at Calcutta.' He called her arrest 'police atrocities' and said she was wrongly arrested for exercising her right to free speech. He accused Kolkata Police of acting to please political leaders. 'This is a case of police atrocities as an innocent young lady, for using her freedom of speech and expression, has been illegally arrested by the Kolkata Police and was sent to judicial custody. This is yet another example of police overzealousness and eagerness to please their political masters,' the post reads. The court directed her to cooperate with the investigation, not leave the country, and furnished bail on a personal bond of Rs 10,000. The court also ordered appropriate police protection for her. Meanwhile, BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul and West Bengal BJP Legal Cell member Sanjukta Samanta filed an FIR against Wazahat Khan, who filed an FIR against Sharmistha Panoli, at two Police Stations, Ballygunje Police Station, Kolkata and Howrah Police Station. Paul said there should be equal rights and rules for every community. Speaking to ANI, Agnimitra Paul said, 'Yes, I have filed a police complaint against Wazahat Khan, who filed a police complaint against Sharmistha Panoli. I believe that Dr BR Ambedkar Ji's constitution is applicable in West Bengal, and there should be equal rights and rules for every Khan, who complained against Sharmistha Panoli, had posted an abusive post against our goddess Maa Kamakhya and Lord Krishna. If a Muslim is insulting my god and goddess, the same action needs to be taken for Wazahat Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma has sent his police force to arrest Wazahat Khan, Mamata Banerjee's police, because of her Muslim appeasement, have been hiding and shielding Wazahat Khan...' The 22-year-old law student from Pune, Sharmistha Panoli, was arrested by Kolkata Police in Gurugram on May 30, for allegedly hurting religious sentiments with a video on Operation Sindoor. The Instagram clip was reportedly derogatory towards a particular religion. However, Panoli had deleted the video and issued an apology on May 15. (ANI)
News18
02-06-2025
- News18
Who Is Wazahat Khan, The Man Behind Sharmishta Panoli's Arrest Booked Over Hate Speech?
Last Updated: Wazahat Khan, who filed the complaint that led to the arrest of influencer Sharmishta Panoli in connection with an objectionable post, was booked for alleged hate speech. The Kolkata Police has now registered a case against Wazahat Khan, the man responsible for filing the complaint that led to social media influencer Sharmishta Panoli's arrest, for allegedly delivering 'hate speech" and hurting religious sentiments. Panoli, a 22-year-old law student and social media influencer, was arrested by Kolkata Police in Haryana's Gurugram after a complaint was filed at the Garden Reach Police Station, alleging that she had promoted communal disharmony via controversial remarks in a now-deleted post linked to Operation Sindoor. Khan, who was responsible for Panoli's arrest, had allegedly made derogatory and offensive remarks against Hindu deities and traditions on social media platforms. At least four videos have been filed against Khan, including in Guwahati and Delhi. Who Is Wazahat Khan? As per his Facebook profile, the accused's full name is Wazahat Khan Qadri Rashidi, a native of Kolkata. As the controversy arose, he locked his profile, which only showed that he was a graduate of St. Thomas' School in Kolkata. He is reportedly the co-founder of the Rashidi Foundation in Kolkata, which filed the complaint against Panoli. After people scanned his social media accounts, it was found that he had posted hate speech targeting the Hindu community, including derogatory remarks on Hindu festivals, deities and temples. He had also posted several messages demanding and celebrating Panoli's arrest. It has come to light that Khan started deleting several of his controversial social media posts as Panoli's arrest led to increased scrutiny on his accounts. Wazahat Khan 'Missing' After Panoli's Arrest Meanwhile, Wazahat Khan's father has said that he had not been since last Sunday, and the family had been receiving threatening calls since Panoli's arrest. Saadaq Khan, the complainant's father, told Aaj Tak that he had been receiving threatening calls. 'My son is innocent and secular. He cannot insult Hinduism. We have been receiving threats since Sharmistha's arrest," he said, adding that his son's profile may have been hacked. Saadaq Khan also said he and his son had been verbally abused since the arrest. Sharmishta Panoli was arrested on Friday (May 30) in Gurugram by Kolkata Police and sent to judicial custody till June 13 for allegedly making communal remarks in a now-deleted video linked to Operation Sindoor. She had issued a public apology for her remarks. First Published:
