Sharmishtha Panoli, a 22-year-old law student from Symbiosis Law School, Pune and a social media influencer, was arrested by Kolkata Police in Gurugram, Haryana for allegedly sharing a communal video related to 'Operation Sindoor', which provoked widespread reaction. The video, shared on Instagram, was widely condemned as it allegedly made derogatory comments about a religious community and Prophet Muhammad. Despite deleting the video and issuing an unconditional apology on social media, Panoli and her family were reportedly untraceable, following which the court issued an arrest warrant.

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After the arrest, she was produced before a Gurugram court and brought to Kolkata on transit remand. A court in Kolkata's Alipore area has sent her to 14-day judicial custody for allegedly hurting religious sentiments through social media posts in the wake of Operation Sindoor. Rejecting the state's request for police custody, the court sent the student to judicial custody after she was brought to Kolkata in connection with the video.

The incident has triggered a political controversy, with BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari criticising the arrest and accusing the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) of doing "politics of appeasement".

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Some media reports said that

Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut publicly defended Panoli, drawing attention to issues related to freedom of expression and the severity of punitive measures. In her note, Kangana said that it was acceptable that Sharmistha used some unpleasant words in her clip to express her feelings, but it was also notable that young people these days often use such words. Kangana mentioned that Sharmistha has apologised for her statement, and that should be enough for that matter.