A north London Conservative councillor has resigned from the party after footage emerged appearing to show him verbally abusing and pushing Costcutter shop staff in Hampstead.
The altercation reportedly began after they refused to give him a UPS parcel without a photo ID.
CCTV footage obtained by the Local Democracy Reporting Service appears to show Camden councillor Shiva Tiwari threatening to shut down the store.
In the video, the councillor can be heard shouting: “Don’t annoy me, I’m a councillor for this area, I will shut down your bloody shop, ok? Call your boss, this is a joke. I have walked here all the way from my house, get me my f***ing package.
“You’ve had attitude with me before, I’ve showed you a picture of my passport. I don’t like you. I’ve got an email with my address. I don’t give a s*** if I raise my voice.”
Urging staff to call their manager because he would “not deal” with the clerk on shift, he continues: “Get me my package. Get me my f***ing package.”
CCTV then appears to show him trying to push past another employee and gain access to the parcel storeroom at the back of the shop.
Police were called to the scene, after which Mr Tiwari later left and returned with a valid form of ID about 40 minutes later, according to the shop’s manager Rakesh Bhimjiyani.
Mr Bhimjiyani said: “Staff said they’d had enough headaches and were happy to just check his ID, and then he was on his way,” the manager said.
The manager, who has operated the store for 39 years, slammed the alleged “abusive language and abuse of power”.
“It escalated within 15 seconds, the first words that came out his mouth were ‘I am a councillor and I will shut your bloody shop down’. People think they’re an exception to the rule these days,” he said.
He continued: “My staff don’t turn up to work to be physically challenged. They’re here to do a job, and we do a sterling job.”
UPS, meanwhile, were backing them “all the way”, Mr Bhimjiyani said.
A Metropolitan Police spokesperson confirmed officers had been called to the scene at 4.50pm on Saturday, July 12 and had spoken to both parties.
They added: “No persons made any formal complaints and no arrests were made. All parties were happy the matter was resolved at the location and no further police action was required.”
The West Hampstead councillor defected from Labour to the Conservatives in March, arguing that the party had moved away from his principles, such as support for “family values, small business, hard work, aspiration and cohesion”.
He was subsequently made Deputy Leader of the Conservative group and had been selected as the Tory candidate for Frognal at next year’s local elections.
On Thursday, the leader of Camden Tories, Councillor Steve Adams, told the LDRS he was “personally upset it had come to this” but that “action was in hand and the matter was being taken seriously”.
Shortly after, Hampstead and Highgate Conservatives told the LDRS they had suspended Mr Tiwari.
Party agent David Douglas MBE said: “In light of the serious allegations that have come to light, I want to clarify that neither I nor the Hampstead and Highgate Conservative Association had any prior knowledge of the reported matters. The moment we became aware, we acted promptly and collectively in unity as a team, in full accordance with the values and responsibilities expected of us.
“As of today, Cllr Tiwari no longer represents the Conservatives in his role on the council. We wish him well in addressing these matters and moving forward, but our priority remains upholding the integrity of our association and the principles we stand for,” Mr Douglas said.
Later that evening, Mr Tiwari’s office said he had resigned from the party and would not be standing for re-election next year. The LDRS was also told he regretted the verbal dispute with the shop and had apologised at the time.
The leader of Camden’s Labour administration, Councillor Richard Olszewski, had earlier called on his former colleague to resign. “Councillor Tiwari needs to explain what’s happening here, but on the face of this recording, this is appalling behaviour,” he said.
“Councillors have a code of conduct and there is an expectation of behaviour on us all, which I hope is being seriously reflected on by both him and his political group. Shop workers face enough abuse without it also coming from elected representatives.”
