There is growing anger over the police response to a vigil staged in memory of Sarah Everard.

Two Kent MPs are among those adding their voices to concerns over the Met Police's response to the event in Clapham.

Officers have been accused of “grabbing and manhandling” women during clashes with the crowd.

Scuffles broke out at the front of a crowd of hundreds as police surrounded a bandstand covered in floral tributes to the 33-year-old, whose body was discovered in Ashford.

At one stage, male officers could be seen grabbing hold of several women before leading them away in handcuffs, to shouts and screams from onlookers.

In response, the crowd chanted “shame on you”, while during another confrontation a distressed woman could be heard telling officers “you’re supposed to protect us”.

The clashes prompted a chorus of criticism from MPs, including Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who described the scenes as “deeply disturbing”.

“Women came together to mourn Sarah Everard – they should have been able to do so peacefully,” he tweeted.

“I share their anger and upset at how this has been handled. This was not the way to police this protest.”

Craig Mackinlay, MP for Thanet South, added his voice to the protests.

He tweeted: "This is not right. Is this really what Covid rules and restrictions have brought us to with heavy police response?

"We are a free country. People came together to remember a life senselessly and cruelly taken."

Tom Tugendhat, MP for Tonbridge, Edenbridge and Malling, said: "Today’s protests were legitimate expressions of outrage about violence against women by free citizens in a free country. The powers used against them echoed something different. We have been vaccinating to liberate and to use judgment at just such a moment."

Hundreds of people converged on the south London park despite an official vigil being called off earlier in the day due to police warnings over coronavirus restrictions.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said: "Some of the footage circulating online from the vigil in Clapham is upsetting. I have asked the Metropolitan Police for a full report on what happened.

"My thoughts remain with Sarah’s family and friends at this terrible time."

Ed Davey, leader of the Lib Dems, called for Met Police commissioner Cressida Dick to resign.

He added: "Cressida Dick has lost the confidence of the millions of women in London.

"The scenes this evening of the policing of the Clapham Common vigil in memory of Sarah Everard are utterly disgraceful and shame the Metropolitan Police."

The Duchess of Cambridge was among those to visit the make-shift memorial at Clapham Common on Saturday to pay her respects, and was seen pausing in front of the sea of flowers.

While the Clapham clashes took place, many other peaceful vigils were held around the country in locations including Glasgow, Nottingham, Birmingham and Bristol – despite warnings over lockdown.

Campaign group Sisters Uncut, which had representatives present at the demonstration, claimed that “male police officers waited for the sun to set before they started grabbing and manhandling women in the crowd”.

Campaign group Reclaim These Streets, which had planned to hold the Clapham vigil before it was cancelled, also urged people to take part in a doorstep vigil at 9.30pm on Saturday. Events took place across Kent.

The group said it would be joining people across the country and “shining a light, a candle, a torch, a phone, to remember Sarah Everard and all the women affected by and lost to violence”.

They added: “We aren’t just lighting a candle for the women we’ve lost: we have been inspired by the women who have reached out and hope this is just the start of a movement that will light a fire for change.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he would light a candle for Ms Everard with his fiancee Carrie Symonds, adding that he would be thinking of the 33-year-old’s family and friends.

“I cannot imagine how unbearable their pain and grief is. We must work fast to find all the answers to this horrifying crime,” he said.

Earlier, Met Police officer Wayne Couzens, 48, from Deal, appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court charged with Ms Everard's kidnap and murder.