After the influencer Sharmishta Panoli was arrested by Kolkata Police, Dutch Member of Parliament Geert Wilders showed support and shared an ‘All Eyes On Sharmishtha’ Poster on the social media platform X. 

The 22-year-old Indian law student was arrested for allegedly hurting religious sentiments through her social media posts. 

In the post, the Dutch MP wrote, “Free the brave Sharmishta Panoli!” He added that it is “a disgrace for the freedom of speech” that she was arrested. 

“Don’t punish her for speaking the truth about Pakistan and Muhammad,” Wilders wrote. 

Sharmishta Panoli’s Arrest

Sharmishta Panoli was arrested on Saturday in Kolkata for posting videos containing communal remarks during Operation Sindoor. 

The Indian Armed Forces’ Operation Sindoor was launched during the wee hours of May 7, targeting terrorist infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). These steps came after the gruesome terror attack in Pahalgam in which 26 individuals were killed. 

According to IANS, the FIR filed against her includes charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for promoting enmity on religious grounds, deliberately outraging religious feelings, and provoking a breach of peace. Despite deleting the video and issuing a public apology, Panoli was produced in court and sent to 14-day judicial custody.

Political Backlash 

Sharmishta Panoli’s arrest has triggered a political backlash. West Bengal BJP Chief and Union Minister of State, Sukanta Majumdar, called her arrest “vote-bank vendetta.”

In a post on X, he wrote, “No riots. No unrest. Yet Mamata Banerjee’s police acted overnight — not for justice, but for appeasement.”

“But when TMC leaders insult Sanatan Dharma, call Jai Shri Ram a gaali, mock Maha Kumbh, and push communal poison — there’s no FIR, no arrest, no apology,” he added. 

On the other hand, Congress leader and MP Karti P. Chidambaram also condemned the arrest and called it a ‘blatant misuse of police powers’.