The family of a senior UAE official arrested for physically assaulting an Indian motorist have reportedly filed a case against the man who filmed the incident and uploaded it to YouTube.

The unnamed Emirati official was arrested on Tuesday after a video emerged on social media showed him physically assaulting the driver after a minor traffic incident.

The case has been referred to Public Prosecution and the official faces up to one year in jail or a maximum fine of AED10,000.

Under the UAE's cybercrime laws, recording videos in public without the permission of those being filmed is illegal and constitutes defamation, Dubai Police said.

Major General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, acting chief of Dubai Police, told Gulf News officers were investigating the complaint.

The clip has attracted nearly 65,000 views on YouTube.