The four-time Grammy winner was in between shows in the southern city of Bangalore when he decided to do some busking on the city’s Church Street.
But midway through Sheeran’s rendition of “Shape of You,” a khaki-uniformed policeman yanked out his guitar and microphone cables, according to images published on social media, prompting the singer to throw up his hands in frustration.
@felixstender33 @Ed Sheeran @Ed Sheeran HQ 🎥 @bingemetv via Instagram #edsheeran #mathematicstour #india #shapeofyou #viral #fy #fyp #police
Local police said they had previously denied Sheeran permission to busk in the area, and that a citizen had called a helpline to report the infringement once he had started playing.
“We rejected it because Church Street is a very busy area and we try to keep the people moving there,” Shekhar H. Tekkannavar, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru Central division, told CNN on Monday.
But Sheeran claimed the street gig had been given the all-clear.
“We had permission to busk,” Sheeran said on Instagram shortly after the incident on Sunday. (The street performance) was planned out before, it wasn’t just us randomly turning up.”
The incident went viral on social media, with one user posting part of Sheeran’s performance on X.
“Went for a casual walk on Church street and stumbled upon Ed Sheeran performing live. What a city!”
Other online reaction was critical of local authorities, with some saying the performance was unlikely to cause any trouble and they should focus on more important issues, including traffic congestion and water scarcity in the city of around 14 million.
Sheeran is a popular artist in India and played a sold-out gig in Mumbai last year.
He is set to perform two more shows in India before heading to China and the United Arab Emirates.
