Derogatory remarks against Prime Minister: Transgender makeup artist Jaanmoni Das arrested

Derogatory remarks against Prime Minister: Transgender makeup artist Jaanmoni Das arrested Jaanmoni was afterwards issued on bail.

Key points

• A case had been then registered under Sections 192 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) and 356(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
• The arrest followed a complaint lodged by Mahila Morcha State president Navya Haridas.
• Das was lately issued a notice asking her to appear before the cyber police on Thursday for further interrogation.
• The controversy erupted after the video was circulated by various users on social media.

Notably, the Kozhikode Cyber police on Thursday (August 20, 2026) arrested transgender makeup artist Jaanmoni Das in connection with a case registered against her over a derogatory remark against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

For context, the arrest followed a complaint lodged by Mahila Morcha State president Navya Haridas. In her complaint submitted to the District Police Chief (Kozhikode city) last month, Ms. Haridas had accused Ms. Das of making objectionable remarks against the Prime Minister in a video circulated on social media related to the recent protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

Meanwhile, a case had been then registered under Sections 192 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) and 356(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). According to the First Information Report, the video was discovered carrying defamatory content which was circulated with the intention of causing unrest and disturbing public peace.

After a preliminary investigation, Ms. Das was lately issued a notice asking her to appear before the cyber police on Thursday for further interrogation. She was arrested after being questioned and was subsequently published on bail.

Notably, the controversy erupted after the video was circulated by various users on social media. Though Ms. Das afterwards issued a clarification, saying that she was not proficient in Malayalam and that the remarks were the result of an error in her apply of the language, the Mahila Morcha activists were not ready to accept it.

For now, derogatory remarks against Prime Minister: Transgender makeup artist Jaanmoni Das arrested remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.