A journalist working with a leading national newspaper was allegedly thrashed by a group of policemen, including an officer of Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police rank, during the Olympic torch relay in New Delhi on Thursday.

Charu Sudan Kasturi, a Special Correspondent with The Telegraph, was at one of the media stands at Rajpath when eight policemen led by Brahm Singh, Additional DCP of north-west district, came there and asked the journalists without Press Information Bureau accreditation to move out of the area.

Kasturi told the policemen that he had a valid pass issued by the Indian Olympic Association and that no instructions had been given to mediapersons to bring along their PIB accreditation card.

He was then allegedly abused and pushed by Singh. Kasturi, who objected to the behaviour of the official, told him that he would leave the venue but would not like to be pushed or abused.

Enraged at this, the policemen allegedly beat him up. Kasturi claimed that he was slapped and kicked by the policemen.

"Charu was badly roughed up by the security personnel present on the spot despite having an authorised pass ... They first verbally abused the correspondent and told him to leave. When he was leaving, he was punched, kicked and slapped. He fell down in the process," Telegraph Editor Malini Chatterjee said in a complaint given to Delhi Police
Commissioner Y S Dadwal.

Despite repeated efforts, senior police officials of New Delhi District, including DCP Anand Mohan, as also Brahm Singh, could not be reached for comments.