A BJP municipal councillor from South Delhi was caught on camera slapping a junior engineer (JE) on Wednesday after the official visited the area to act against an illegal building in Sangam Vihar.

South Delhi Municipal Corporation councillor from Sangam Vihar (East) Neeraj Gupta can be seen slapping engineer R.P. Singh as a crowd surrounds them and ends up getting involved in a scuffle.

Deputy Commissioner (Central Zone) Rupesh Kumar Thakur said the engineer had sent a complaint to the Sangam Vihar Station House Officer. Deputy Commissioner of Police (South-East) M.S. Randhawa said: “We will register an FIR as soon as we receive the complaint.”

However, Mr. Gupta denied slapping the official. He said he was at his office in Sangam Vihar, when he heard commotion at an under construction house about 100 metres away.

“When I went to the spot, I saw that the JE had begun demolishing the house coming up in the 25-yard plot. I asked him why he had not sent a notice to the owner or taken action earlier as the work had started 15 days ago,” said Mr. Gupta.

He said the crowd around him may have pushed, but he did not raise his hand. That being said, the video of the incident raises questions against Mr. Gupta’s version.

The Opposition Congress condemned the incident. Leader of Opposition Farhad Suri said: “We all know about the quantum of corruption in the Corporation, so what else do we expect from the BJP?”

Act caught on camera; police to register

FIR soon