A group of aggressive thugs interrupted a rally organized by the Movement of People with Concern (GMP) in front of the Medan mayor's office on Tuesday.

GMP were protesting acting mayor Dzulmi Eldin who was implicated in a graft case worth Rp 20 billion (US$1.7 million) while serving as head of Medan revenue agency. "We were beaten and threatened with death if we continued our rally," rally coordinator Sugianto said on Tuesday.

He said suspicions were firstly raised by the Supreme Audit Agency in its 2006-2007 audit report, which cited the Rp 20 billion state loss allegedly inflicted from a series of projects organized by the Medan revenue agency under Dzulmi leadership.

Commenting on the accusation, acting mayor Dzulmi said that the accusations were unfounded, however, he refused to elaborate further. When asked about the thugs who had allegedly been ordered to disperse the rally, city secretary Syaiful Bachri denied the city had any involvement.