NHRC has asked the West Bengal DGP to submit a report on the safety of law student Sharmishta Panoli. The complaint says she is getting rape and death threats from radical Islamists while in custody.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has requested a report from the Director General of Police (DGP) of West Bengal regarding a complaint from an NGO about the arrest of law student Sharmishta Panoli by the Kolkata Police.
In response to this incident, the Bar Council of India issued a robust statement condemning the arrest.
Additionally, the Bar Council of Delhi expressed its support for Panoli, describing the arrest as “selective, excessive, and politically motivated,” and called for her immediate release.
Sharmishta Panoli, a law student from Kolkata currently studying in Pune, was arrested on Friday for allegedly making provocative remarks about Operation Sindoor on social media. An FIR was filed at the Garden Reach Police Station in Kolkata, and a court in Alipore placed her in custody for 14 days.
The Legal Rights Observatory (LRO), a legal advocacy organization, has submitted a complaint to the NHRC, stating that Sharmishta has received numerous death and rape threats while in custody. The NGO has also claimed that proper procedures were not followed during her arrest in Gurgaon.
NHRC Member Priyank Kanoongo informed the media,
“The complaint alleges that proper legal procedures were not followed during her arrest and transit. It also states that the girl has received threats from radical islamists, including rape and death threats,”
The NHRC has issued a notice to the Chief Secretary and DGP of West Bengal, instructing them to ensure her safety, particularly as she is currently in judicial custody.
Kanoongo stated,
“Additionally, we have requested clarification from the Haryana government regarding whether all legal protocols were adhered to. Based on their responses, we will determine the next steps,”
He mentioned that the NHRC has called for a report within ten days.
In a statement dated June 1, the Chairman of the Bar Council of India remarked,
“I stand firmly with Sharmistha Panoli, whose arrest and judicial custody for a now-deleted social media video despite her immediate apology represents an absolute failure of justice and a blatant assault on freedom of expression. The Bengal government and Kolkata Police have once again proved their pattern of excessive, selective, and politically motivated action, targeting individuals from particular communities while ignoring or even shielding far more egregious acts by others.”
In its press release, the Bar Council of Delhi stated,
“The high-handedness and unnecessary haste shown by the Kolkata Police in arresting Ms. Sharmistha Panoli, as if she was a criminal, shows the selective, excessive and politically motivated action of Kolkata Police, which no doubt, [was] done at the behest of West Bengal Government.”
A police complaint has been lodged against a 30-year-old resident of Kolkata, whose complaint on May 14 resulted in the arrest of a 22-year-old law student over a social media post from Gurugram, according to sources familiar with the situation.