London-based doctor and popular YouTuber Sangram Patil was detained at Mumbai international airport on Saturday (January 10, 2026) morning in connection with a defamation case filed by a BJP functionary, a police official said.
Crime branch officials questioned him for hours and allowed him to go after serving him a notice under section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), he said.
The section mandates that the police may issue a notice of appearance to an accused in certain cases where the prescribed jail term is short, instead of arresting them.
“Dr. Patil was detained upon his arrival from London. He and his wife were questioned and subsequently released after preliminary investigation,” the official said.
The action is in connection with a case filed last month at the N. M. Joshi Marg police station on the complaint of BJP media cell functionary Nikhil Bhamre. Patil is originally from Maharashtra but is currently a British citizen.
