Wajahat Khan, man who filed case against Sharmishta Panoli, arrested for hate speech

The man who filed a police complaint against social media influencer and law student Sharmistha Panoli leading to her arrest in Gurugram on May 30, has finally been arrested by the Kolkata Police. Wajahat Khan, who was on the run since June 1, was arrested by Kolkata Police after they conducted a series of raids, as he had ignored multiple summons issued to him.

A case had been registered against Khan at Kolkata’s Golf Green Police Station for allegedly spreading hate speech and hurting religious sentiments through social media.

After the FIR was registered, police served three notices at his Garden Reach residence, directing him to appear for questioning, but Khan absconded and did not turn up for investigation.

Kolkata Police had arrested Panoli on May 30 in Gurugram after a video she posted on social media drew strong reactions.

Panoli had used abusive language in the video besides making communal remarks criticising Muslim Bollywood celebrities for their silence on Operation Sindoor. She was subsequently presented before a magistrate and sent to 14-day judicial custody. The video was later deleted, and Panoli also issued a public apology.

After Panoli’s arrest, Khan went missing, and his father, Saadat Khan, told media that he had not returned home and that the family was receiving threatening calls, accusing them of “ruining Panoli’s life”.

Meanwhile, a complaint was also filed against Wajahat Khan with the Kolkata Police by the Shree Ram Swabhiman Parishad on June 2. The complaint addressed to the Officer-in-Charge of the Garden Reach Police Station accused Khan of using derogatory, inflammatory, and sexually explicit language targeting Hindu deities, religious traditions, and the community at large.

It alleged that Khan had referred to Hindus using derogatory terms such as “rapist cultures” and “urine drinkers”, and called for action under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act.

Meanwhile, Panoli was granted interim bail in the Operation Sindoor post case. As part of the bail conditions, she was directed to deposit a sum of Rs 10,000 and barred from leaving the country without prior permission from the Chief Judicial Magistrate.

The court had earlier refused to grant her interim bail while observing that the freedom of speech is not absolute and does not allow anyone to hurt religious sentiments.