Kolkata: A Krishnanagar court has issued a non-bailable warrant against poet Srijato Bandyopadhyay, just a day before the first phase of polling in West Bengal, triggering political and public attention.

The poet later confirmed the development on social media, stating that the information about the arrest warrant was accurate.

“An arrest warrant has been issued in my name. It is not fake news, it is 100 per cent correct,” the poet wrote on social media on Wednesday evening.

The issue quickly escalated into a political talking point during the ongoing election campaign.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also reacted to the matter while addressing a rally, questioning the circumstances surrounding the alleged arrest attempt.

Before the poet’s confirmation, the Election Commission had categorically rejected reports of an arrest warrant, calling them misleading.

The Commission, in an official statement, said no arrest warrant has been issued against the poet and strongly condemned the “deliberate spread of misinformation”.

The controversy stems from a 2017 case linked to a poem posted by Srijato on social media.

The case dates back to March 19, 2017, when Srijato posted a 12-line poem titled ‘Abhishap’ on Facebook following Yogi Adityanath’s swearing-in as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister.

The poem sparked outrage, with some Hindutva groups alleging that references to the Hindu symbol ‘Trishul’ hurt religious sentiments.

A complaint was subsequently filed by a college student from Bagdogra at the Siliguri Cyber Crime Police Station. An FIR was registered under Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code and Section 67 of the Information Technology Act.

The matter saw limited progress until 2022, when the Calcutta High Court directed Bidhannagar Police to submit an investigation report, following allegations of inaction despite the FIR.

Srijato has earlier maintained that his poem was misinterpreted and framed the case as an issue of freedom of expression.