Delhi Police clarifies viral post claiming attack on cop involved in Namaz row

A controversy erupted after a purported video of sub-inspector kicking and shoving people offering 'namaz' in Delhi's Inderlok went viral on Friday.

Delhi Police issued a clarification Sunday after a viral social media post claimed that the sub-inspector who kicked people offering 'namaz' in the Inderlok area was attacked a day after in the presence of cops.

Delhi A police sub-inspector kicks men who were offering namaz on the road in Inderlok area, in New Delhi, Friday, March, 8, 2024. (PTI)

A purported video of a scuffle between the locals and police was shared on X.

The user who shared the video claimed, “Inspector Manoj Tomar, who kicked a namazi in Delhi yesterday, was attacked in the presence of police.”

The official account of DCP North Delhi refuted the claim saying, “This is wrong information. The mentioned SI is not present in this video.”

“The video is not of yesterday (Saturday) but of Friday, 8th March, when protestors had gathered in Inderlok. Locals escorted police officers to the police post after which scuffle took place,” it added.

The situation was tense in the north Delhi area after sub-inspector Manoj Kumar Tomar shoved and kicked a few people offering namaz on a road near the Inderlok Metro Station.

The incident took place during a Friday prayer around 2 pm, leading to a protest by hundreds of locals against the force, and suspension of the sub-inspector with immediate effect.

In the video, Tomar was seen trying to disperse a few men praying on the road near a mosque and in what seemed like a sudden burst of rage, he started shoving and kicking some of them.

People from various sections of the society, including political leaders, condemned the act after a video of it went viral on social media.

Tomar, who was posted as in-charge of Inderlok Police Post which comes under Sarai Rohilla Police Station, was suspended with immediate effect.

Maulana Mahmood Madani, who heads a faction of the prominent Muslim organisation Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, strongly condemned the police officer's physical attack on people praying and urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to terminate the services of the officer. In a letter to Shah, Madani pointed out that such incidents not only deepen a significant trust deficit, but also tarnish the country's global reputation. He also expressed concern about the alarming "anti-Muslim environment" in Delhi.