KOLKATA: A law student was arrested from her residence in Gurugram for making derogatory religious statements linking to Operation Sindoor. Sharmistha Panoli, a student from Pune was taken into custody by Kolkata police.

Panoli achieved quick fame during 'Operation Sindoor' days, with her sarcastic take on subjects related to war. However, one such video, where she made acerbic religious remarks triggered widespread condemnation and even forced an apology. The video was eventually removed from social media.

“Whatever was put are my personal feelings and I never intentionally wanted to hurt anybody. If anybody is hurt, I’m sorry for the same. Henceforth, I will be cautious in my public post," Sharmistha wrote on her social media page.

With her arrest, social media came together in support of Sharmistha and blamed the draconian conduct of Kolkata police to travel up to Gurugram to arrest a student over a Facebook post for which she earlier apologized.

“Mamata Banerjee needs Muslim votes so she sends police to arrest Sharmistha. Panoli ridiculed Pakistanis which hurt certain Indians. Her arrest sets a dangerous precedent in a nation that espouses free speech and democracy” said one user on social media.