Three Delhi policemen have been suspended over the brutal beating of a man in the street following a fender bender in India. Viral footage of the altercation sparked a protest and police investigation.

The incident reportedly occurred after taxi driver, Sarabjeet Singh, and his 16-year-old son Balwant Singh, bumped into a police vehicle in Mukherjee Nagar, New Delhi, on Sunday.

What appeared to begin as tense words between an officer and the driver escalated into a chaotic street brawl involving dozens of cops and weapons, with footage videoed by bystanders.

A brutal action done by delhi police where they do not have constitutional right to behave like this with anyone @ArvindKejriwal@msisodia i request to delhi government as well as another concerned authorities to take a very strict action against this case. pic.twitter.com/No1ZBvoyST — Jagdeep Singh (@MLAJagdeepSingh) June 16, 2019

In the video, several officers can be seen mercilessly thrashing Singh with a iron-bound bamboo stick called a lathis, used as a baton by officers in India. One policeman reported that he was injured by the driver who, he claimed, struck him with a sword.

Clips of the violence drew outrage online, with stunned viewers criticising the “shameful incident” and “brutal action” by police. Delhi politician Manjinder Singh Sirsa publicly defended the father and son, tweeting that the “old man did not harm any police officer” and claiming the sword was pulled out in self-defense.

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By Sunday night, viral footage of the beating had spread and sparked an angry protest outside Mukherjee Nagar police station. Demonstrators demanded the dismissal of all officers involved and not just the three suspended.

An investigation into the incident has now been launched by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

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