Calcutta HC grants interim bail to law student Sharmistha Panoli, father expresses happiness
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], June 6 (ANI): Law student Sharmistha Panoli, arrested for allegedly hurting religious sentiments through a social media post, has been granted interim bail by the Calcutta High Court on Thursday.
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.
Her father, Prithviraj Panoli, expressed relief, citing her health issues, including kidney problems and Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Prithviraj Panoli said, 'I am very happy... no father would like his daughter to stay in jail. Her mother was crying for a long time, but she is very happy now. There were two concerns: his kidney problem and Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). She needs regular medicine, but since we didn't have a prescription, the medicine wasn't given in jail.'
'Also, when the video was posted, we found out after two days and told her to delete it. We hoped this would be a lesson for her, and that she would do better in the future,' Panoli said.
According to Sharmistha's lawyer, DP Singh, bail was granted on three conditions: Sharmistha must surrender her passport, cooperate with the investigation, and sign a bail bond.
DP Singh argued that Sharmistha is a victim of circumstances and that her social media post was a defence of her country based on videos she had seen. He questioned the severity of the response, suggesting that the community's reaction was disproportionate to her actions.
Speaking to ANI, Advocate DP Singh said, 'She has got bail on 3 conditions, that she will surrender her passport, she will join the investigation and sign a bail bond...whatever is happening right now in the country is wrong. You just arrest students...they speak what they see, their exposure is different...whatever she said, she said it based on the videos she saw...These children don't know much...there is a fight between India & Pakistan and they are just defending their country, so in such a situation... if we remove the clip of 5-10 seconds, she didn't say anything wrong...She is a victim of circumstances...a whole community has stood up against her...it is not like a riot took place because of what she said, so why is she being punished?'
West Bengal Assembly Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari 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.'
https://x.com/SuvenduWB/status/1930556756666585104
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.
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 community...Wazahat 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 Khan...As 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)
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