"Hate speech of any kind is unacceptable, if anyone engages in it...": TMC's Kunal Ghosh on Sharmishta Panoli case
Jun 03, 2025
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], June 3 : After the Calcutta High Court rejected the interim bail plea of Social media influencer Sharmishta Panoli, TMC leader Kunal Ghosh on Tuesday asserted that if anyone engages in hate speech of any kind, appropriate legal action must be taken against the individual.
Speaking to the media, Ghosh cleared his party's stand.
"This is entirely a legal matter. Our position is very clear -- whether it's on social media or in society at large, hate speech of any kind is unacceptable. If anyone engages in it, appropriate legal action must be taken," he said.
Earlier today, the Calcutta High Court rejected the interim bail plea of social media influencer Sharmistha Panoli. Her lawyer, Md Samimuddin, said that the HC has directed the police to produce the case diary so that the "bail hearing can be held on June 5."
Speaking to ANI, Samimuddin mentioned that the HC also instructed authorities to ensure proper amenities are provided to her in the correctional home and barred the filing of any fresh FIRs against her.
"The High Court has directed the state to produce the case diary so that the bail hearing can be held on the 5th. It also instructed the state to ensure that basic amenities, which are currently lacking in the correctional home, are provided to her. Furthermore, the court stated that no fresh FIR should be filed for the same cause of action, and we are hopeful of getting bail on the 5th," he said.
A 22-year-old law student from Pune, Sharmistha Panoli, was arrested by Kolkata Police in Gurugram on Friday for allegedly hurting religious sentiments with a video on Operation Sindoor. The Instagram clip was reportedly derogatory towards a particular religion. However, Panoli had deleted the video and issued an apology on May 15.
On Saturday, Panoli was produced before the Alipore Court in Kolkata, which remanded her in judicial custody for 14 days.
