Calcutta HC denies interim bail to Sharmistha Panoli, to hear plea on June 5

The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday (June 3) refused bail to Sharmistha Panoli, the 22-year-old Pune-based law student arrested for allegedly posting offensive content on social media.

Rejecting her plea, the single-judge vacation bench of Justice Partha Sarathi Chatterjee said, “We are a remarkable country, consisting of different castes, communities and religions. One should be cautious before making any derogatory comment against any of the communities. The Supreme Court has also said that making derogatory comments should be avoided.”

State told to produce case diary

The court also directed the West Bengal government to produce the case diary on June 5, when Panoli's interim bail prayer will be heard again.

The bench directed that the Garden Reach police station case, in connection with which Panoli was arrested, will be investigated, while proceedings in all other FIRs in this regard will remain stayed till further orders.

The court said the state will ensure that no further case will be registered on the alleged action of Panoli and directed the state to produce the case diary on the next date of hearing on June 5.

‘Be careful in making public comments’

Justice Mukherjee observed that one must be careful in making comments in public in a diverse country like India.

Petitioner 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.

Also Read: Pune law student arrested for offensive remarks on Operation Sindoor

He claimed that there was a war of words on social media between users across India and Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, which was undertaken by India in response to the Pahalgam terror attack that claimed the lives of 26 men, most of whom were tourists.

It was stated that the complaint before the Garden Reach police station in Kolkata claimed that Panoli's comments on social media hurt the religious sentiments of the Muslim community and caused disharmony among people.

Plea for bail, quashing of FIR

He prayed for quashing of the FIR against Panoli and sought grant of bail to her, claiming that no notice was served to her for appearing before the police for investigation into the complaint.

Panoli's lawyer, stating that the complaint does not specify what had been said in her social media comments, claimed that it does not disclose any cognisable offence.

He stated that the complaint was filed on May 15 and two days later, a warrant of arrest was obtained by the police.

He submitted before the court that Panoli's family had also complained to the police that she was under threat and that the alleged offensive post had been taken off from the social media on May 8 after having posted it on the night of May 7.

Also Read: From Dutch MP to Pawan Kalyan, right-wing support pours in for Sharmistha Panoli

Case history

The law student was arrested by the Kolkata Police from Gurugram and was remanded in judicial custody by a Kolkata court till June 13.

It was claimed by her lawyer that at least four FIRs were filed in different police stations in the state.

Appearing for the state, senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee submitted that the complaint contains a cognisable offence and that the alleged post contained an offensive video apart from text.

He stated that Panoli's bail petition was rejected by the magistrate of the lower court and she was remanded to judicial custody.

(With agency inputs)