The Calcutta high court on Thursday granted interim bail to influencer Sharmistha Panoli, who was arrested for her alleged controversial social media comments on Operation Sindoor.
The court has directed the social media influencer to furnish a bail bond of ₹10,000.
The 22-year-old was arrested by the Kolkata Police last week from Gurugram in Haryana. She is accused of hurting religious sentiments through her ‘communal’ comments in a video on her social media.
In the video, she had made remarks criticising Bollywood actors on Operation Sindoor. After facing backlash, Panoli deleted the post and issued an apology.
Earlier this week, the court denied interim bail to Panoli, citing that freedom of speech does not mean one can hurt the sentiments of another person or community.
“Look, we have freedom of speech, but that doesn’t mean you will go on to hurt others. Our country is diverse, with people from different castes, creeds, and religions. We must be cautious by saying this. So, the day after tomorrow. Heavens will not fall,” Justice Partha Sarathi Chatterjee had said.
The court had also directed the West Bengal government to produce the case diary on June 5.
Panoli’s lawyer claimed that no offence is made out in the complaint filed against her for allegedly making some remarks on social media during the Operation Sindoor against Pakistan.
He claimed that there was a war of words on social media between users across India and Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, which India undertook in response to the Pahalgam terror attack that claimed the lives of 26 men, most of whom were tourists.
Her arrest led to a political row in West Bengal, with the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) describing Sharmishta Panoli’s arrest as “selective enforcement” and accusing the Kolkata Police of acting in “uncharacteristic haste”.
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