Gorakhpur, May 12 (PTI) A police post in-charge was suspended for allegedly beating up an Imam while trying to disperse people after the completion of the namaz at a mosque here, officials said on Wednesday.

The accused official, Arjun Singh, post in-charge of Pandey Hata area that falls under the Rajghat police station, was trying to disperse the people, in view of COVID 19-norms against social gathering, after they were done offering their namaz at Nai Masjid around 3.30 pm on Tuesday, they said.

Later, he attacked Mohammad Hashim, the Imam, and beat him till the people around intervened, police said, adding the Kotwali Circle Officer reached the spot and pacified them.

According to the COVID restrictions, a maximum of five people are allowed to gather at a time at one place to offer prayers, Imam-e-Eidgah Maulana Khalid Rasheed from Farangi Mahali, Lucknow, told PTI.

In a video posted on social media, the Imam can heard accusing the post in-charge of beating him and using abusive language.

"He tried to tarnish the image of the city that the chief minister hails from," Mohammad Hashim said, adding police took immediate action on his complaint.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dinesh Kumar P said city SP was investigating the matter and further action would be taken on the basis of his report.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)