New Delhi: The Bar Council of Delhi on Monday demanded the immediate release of Sharmishta Panoli, the Instagram influencer who was arrested by Kolkata Police over her purported remarks related to Operation Sindoor. The influencer, who hails from Kolkata and studies in Pune's Law University, was arrested in Gurugram late on May 30. She was later produced before a Kolkata court, which sent her into judicial custody till June 13.
A release by the council’s Chairman Surya Prakash Khatri said, "The Bar Council of Delhi strongly condemns the arrest of Sharmistha Panoli, a 22-year-old law student, by the West Bengal Police, over a social media video, despite the fact that she immediately deleted it and apologised, when some people found it hurtful." "I, on behalf of the Bar Council of Delhi, demand the immediate release of Sharmishtha Panoli to uphold the scale of justice," he added. Khatri alleged the "high-handedness and unnecessary haste" by Kolkata Police in arresting Panoli, besides its "selective, excessive and politically motivated action".
On June 1, Bar Council of India Chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra issued a similar statement asking for Panoli's immediate release. The Instagram influencer has been booked under relevant sections for promoting enmity between different groups, malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings, apart from intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace.