On Saturday, Pawan Kalyan, the Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, spoke out against the detention of social media influencer Sharmishta Panoli by West Bengal law enforcement due to a video deemed communal. He stated that “secularism should be reciprocal” and called upon the West Bengal Police to act with fairness. Kalyan acknowledged that while “blasphemy should be condemned,” using secularism as a “defensive tool” is inappropriate.
Sharmishta Panoli was taken into custody by the Kolkata Police in Gurugram, Haryana, after allegedly sharing a communal video that sparked considerable backlash online. This controversy originated from an Instagram clip, which has since been removed, where Panoli criticized Bollywood stars for their silence regarding “Operation Sindoor.” Police reports indicate that the video circulated widely and faced allegations of inciting hate speech. Following substantial trolling and threats in response, Panoli deleted the video and offered a public apology. However, despite her apology, a First Information Report (FIR) had already been filed in Kolkata. Authorities mentioned that they had made several attempts to deliver legal notices to Panoli and her family.
“During Operation Sindoor, Sharmista, a law student, spoke out, her words regrettable and hurtful to some. She owned her mistake, deleted the video and apologised. The WB Police swiftly acted, taking action against Sharmistha. But what about the deep, searing pain inflicted upon millions when elected leaders, MPs of TMC, mock Sanatana Dharma? Where is the outrage when our faith is called ‘Gandha Dharm’? Where is their apology? Where is their swift arrest?” posted Pawan Kalyan on his official social media page.
