Bengaluru officer slapping a motorcyclist during a routine traffic stop.

BENGALURU: A head constable attached to the Madiwala traffic police station was suspended for assaulting a two-wheeler rider who was stopped for riding against one way near Silk Board Junction recently. The tainted head constable is identified as Mallikarjuna Teli.The senior officials had given oral instructions to the traffic police across the city regarding motorists riding against the one way. The drive began after 11 am when the traffic police noticed two persons riding on a two-wheeler against one way under the Silk Board flyover.Based on the primary probe, the senior officials learnt that the incident happened around 1 pm on October 13.Mallikarjuna was assisting an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) in stopping the vehicles and registering spot cases. Mallikarjuna stopped the vehicle and asked the rider to pay the fine.The rider, identified as Nitesh, hailing from Kerala, got into an argument with the police about who gave them the rights to stop the vehicle and impose the spot fine. The rider argued that he was aware of the instructions given to them not to stop the vehicles for registering spot cases. During the argument, Mallikarjuna slapped him while he was wearing a helmet.The rider removed the helmet and told the police not to assault him, warning that the matter would become big if he raised his hand. Mallikarjuna slapped him again. The rider continued to question why he was assaulted. The ASI instructed to record the argument and call Hoysala police to hand the rider over to law-and-order police. The pillion rider recorded the incident on his mobile phone.Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic-South) Gopal M Byakod said the constable was suspended. “We are verifying the body-worn camera recording to ascertain details about what exactly happened at the spot.”A senior officer said Nitesh claimed to be a YouTuber, and the video uploaded on social media appears to be edited. “We are verifying it. A case was registered against him for riding against one way, and a Rs 500 fine was collected from him.”