The Kolkata police on Sunday issued a detailed defence of its decision to arrest 22-year-old law student and influencer Sharmishtha Panoli, who has been accused of stoking communal hatred through a social media video.

Facing flak from several quarters over the move, the force insisted that Panoli’s arrest had nothing to do with her patriotism or anti-Pakistan stance, but stemmed from the use of abusive and divisive language that, it said, crossed legal boundaries.

In a strongly worded statement, the police dismissed as “mischievous and misleading” the claim that Panoli was arrested for simply expressing national pride.

The statement came amid mounting social media criticism and political outrage over her 14-day judicial custody.

“This should not be confused with freedom of speech and expression,” the police said, underscoring that national pride is welcome, but not at the cost of inciting hate.

Panoli, who was arrested in Gurugram late on May 30 and brought to Kolkata, had shared a video earlier in May criticising Bollywood celebrities — particularly Muslim actors — for their silence on Operation Sindoor, a reported military strike on terror camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The now-deleted video, which contained inflammatory language and communal overtones, was flagged in a complaint filed at the Garden Reach police station on May 15.

Police said that Panoli had been untraceable despite multiple attempts to serve her notice under Section 35 of the newly implemented Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNSS).

A court warrant followed, leading to her arrest and transfer to Kolkata under transit remand.

While Panoli had publicly apologised and taken down the video, the police insisted that legal proceedings had already begun and could not be reversed by a mere apology. “The law takes its own course once a case is registered,” the statement read.

Rejecting claims that the arrest was politically motivated or meant to appease a vote bank, the police reiterated that the case was about communal provocation — not nationalism.

“The accused was not arrested for opposing Pakistan or for any expression of patriotism, but for uploading content that could provoke hatred between communities,” the force clarified.

With political temperature rising over the incident, BJP leaders accused the Trinamool Congress-led government of targeting a “young Hindu woman” for electoral reasons.

BJP’s Amit Malviya, taking to X (formerly Twitter), questioned the timing of the arrest, saying Panoli had already deleted the post and apologised weeks earlier.

“Justice cannot be selectively applied. If the law is truly impartial, then would the same standard be used against Mamata Banerjee for her past remarks?” he asked.

The Kolkata Police, meanwhile, urged the public to maintain restraint and act responsibly on social media.

“In moments when the country is united, such acts only aid our enemies,” the statement read.

The force added that “hate speech that targets any community or class of citizens, and which threatens communal harmony, is punishable under the BNSS.”