"This has knocked me for 10 or 12, never mind six!"
A furious father received a police visit and was called by social services after staff at a diner accused him of hitting his nine-year-old son.
Single father Rupi Singh says he was left “totally humiliated” by the incident.
The 44-year-old from Dudley denies laying a hand on nine-year-old Harman during a family meal at Chance and Counters cafe in Birmingham.
On March 19, 2022, the father and son had stopped off at the restaurant with four other relatives after watching a football match.
But their pit stop soon became problematic when Harman got upset at the table and a staff member started questioning the group about it.
Mr Singh said the worker then accused him of hitting his son in the diner before a group of other workers told him to leave.
He said: “I was approached by a member of staff who said, ‘Are you the person who hit that child?’
“I was in shock, then three or four approached and asked me to leave. I was upset, I was trying to get my point across.
“To be honest, it’s all a bit of a blackout, I just didn’t expect it.
“I couldn’t get any answers to how, when and where? Before making allegations like that you have to be 300 per cent sure.
“I kept thinking, ‘why me?’ I’ve had a bit of a bad run. I feel humiliated and worried, unable to think, unable to work.
“I would never, ever lay a finger on my son. This has knocked me for 10 or 12, never mind six!”
After being asked to leave, the father admitted shouting at staff members before being ushered out by his brother.
He now fears being labelled as a “child abuser” by customers who witnessed the angry exchange.
“That is the situation they created.
“I feel victimised as a man with his son. I’m a single parent, I want to get out a bit more.
“I’m worried some people may recognise me and think I’m a child abuser.”
That night, an angry Mr Singh left several voicemails and emails to Chance and Counters.
But Mr Singh was even more stunned when police visited his home to question him about the incident.
He added: “I told them my son was at his grandparents. They spoke to him and were satisfied.”
Mr Singh stated that the visit was solely related to the hitting allegations, revealing that he received a follow-up call from a social worker.
In a statement, West Midlands Police said Harman had no signs of injury and said that he told them he had not been hit.
West Midlands Police said: “We received a report from a member of the public that a child had been punched on the arm last Saturday, March 19.
“We spoke to the nine-year-old who said they had not been hit. There were no signs of any injuries and, as such, no evidence of any crime taking place.”
A spokesperson for Chance and Counters said:
“We are aware of the incident on Saturday, March 19, and we have conducted an internal investigation in addition to co-operating with the police enquiry.
“A member of staff witnessed an interaction between, who we believe to be, Mr Singh and his son that made them incredibly uncomfortable.
“Upon being asked to leave, the customer became confrontational, threatening several of our staff members both verbally and physically.
“We have provided statements, CCTV and other footage to the police, as well as details of the huge volume of voicemails and emails we have received since the event.
“We had, and continue to have, no desire to escalate the situation beyond removing him from the premises and ensuring he does not return.
“We simply do not tolerate threatening behaviour towards our staff and behaviour within our premises that makes staff or other customers feel unsafe.”
In England, smacking a child is allowed as long as it constitutes “reasonable punishment”.
But Scotland introduced its own ban in November 2020. All forms of physical punishment of children are now against the law, with minors having the same legal protection from assault as adults.
All forms of physical punishment have been made illegal under the Children’s Act in Wales. This includes smacking, hitting, slapping and shaking.
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