Won’t apologise for sharing Mamata Banerjee’s photo: BJP activist Priyanka Sharma

Kolkata, May 15

BJP youth wing activist Priyanka Sharma, who walked out of jail on Wednesday after being arrested for posting a morphed picture of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Facebook, said she would not apologise.

“I don’t have any regrets. I have not done anything for which I have to apologise,” Sharma told a press conference at the BJP office here.

She was released at 9.40 am from the Alipore jail after five days following a Supreme Court order.

The BJP activist alleged that she was harassed and tortured in the jail. “I was tortured in the jail. Even the jailer pushed me on Tuesday. I told them I am not a criminal that you are pushing me into the jail room like this,” she said.

“They behaved very rudely. The condition inside was very bad.”

Local BJP leaders and her mother were present outside the jail in south Kolkata when she was released.

“My family and I have gone through much agony which I don’t deserve,” Sharma told PTI over phone.

Her brother, Rajiv Sharma, alleged that the jail authorities violated the Supreme Court order by not releasing her on Tuesday.

“When we went to the jail on Tuesday, officials said they needed a hard copy of the order. I am in Delhi and it took time to get the hard copy and, therefore, the delay. They did not abide by the Supreme Court order of immediate release,” he said.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday termed the arrest of Sharma “prima facie arbitrary” and pulled up the West Bengal government for the delay in releasing Sharma.

The apex court, which initially said Sharma’s apology would be a bail condition, later clarified that it would not be a condition for bail, but she should apologise at the time of her release for sharing the post.

Sharma had allegedly shared on Facebook the photo in which Banerjee’s face had been morphed on to actor Priyanka Chopra’s picture from the MET Gala event in New York. Her arrest was followed by protests from the BJP and other social media users. PTI