New Delhi, Aug 25 (IANS): Delhi Police have initiated a departmental inquiry against a Delhi Police constable after a viral video captured him allegedly assaulting a minor boy in South West Delhi's RK Puram area.

The video that has been doing the rounds on social media shows a constable beating a boy with a baton as the latter screams out in pain. A passerby on the road recorded the video. Towards the end of the video, the policeman is seen confronting the passerby for filming the video before the video is abruptly cut.

"An inquiry regarding the video has been ordered, which will be conducted by an Additional DCP rank officer. Disciplinary action against the staff will be initiated based on the outcome of the inquiry," said Additional DCP, South West, Ingit Pratap Singh.

The incident is believed to have taken place on the night of August 22, when the constable was on night duty and found some children lying on the road in the area.

"During the lockdown period, we had to deploy extra staff in the area to prevent burglaries and other thefts in the area. The boys from nearby jhuggis come to sleep in the open area sometimes," said a senior police officer.

The Delhi Police have drawn flak on social media after the video started doing the rounds on Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp. An inquiry was initiated after the matter was brought to the notice of senior police officers.