New Delhi: Social media has erupted with outrage after a fourth-year law student was arrested by the Kolkata Police from her home in Gurugram on Friday for alleged derogatory remarks against the Prophet.
Sharmistha, a student from a well-known institute in Pune, is also a social media influencers. On May 14, she had made certain verbal comments after being trolled by Pakistanis for her support for Operation Sindoor.
In response to hate messages by Pakistani social media users, in which they had accused India of forcing a war upon their country, Sharmistha had said that India could not simply sit back and watch while citizens were killed by terrorists backed by Pakistan.
While supporting India’s stand, she was accused of making certain derogatory comments against Islam and the Prophet. She deleted the video later and tendered an apology. She continued to be threatened by rape and murder though.
‘Sar Tan Se Juda’ calls were also given with a section of social media users seeking her arrest. However, nobody suspected that the Kolkata Police would travel 1,500 km to Gurugram to arrest her. Sharmistha has been taken to Kolkata, where she will be produced before a court today.
Netizens have stated that this is part of Mamata Banerjee’s appeasement politics. “At a time when one of her own leaders has threatened to rape the wife and mother of the inspector-in-charge of a police station, she sends her police to arrest a student who stood by India,” a social media user noted.
The incident bring backs memories of the Nupur Sharma case. However, unlike Sharma, who enjoyed political backing, Sharmistha will have to fight her case by herself. It is unclear whether the police acted on a complaint or registered a suo motu case against the student.
