A FORMER station master says he was demoted and transferred after a confrontation with the suspended minister Tony Stewart over the handing out of election pamphlets in which Mr Stewart demanded of him: "Do you know who I am?"

Peter Vrettos says he was moved from Bankstown to the smaller Carramar station after the confrontation in 2003.

He was later the subject of a complaint from Mr Stewart who received an apology from RailCorp over the affair.

Mr Stewart had claimed Mr Vrettos called him "scum" as he and other campaign workers handed out leaflets. Mr Vrettos said yesterday: "He just charged up to me and says, 'Do you know who I am!' He goes, 'Do you know what I can do to you?' and then rang [then] transport minister Carl Scully."

Mr Vrettos said he was transferred over the incident and denies calling Mr Stewart "scum".

The Greens MP Lee Rhiannon said yesterday that she had received complaints about Mr Stewart in the wake of an inquiry set up by the Premier, Nathan Rees, into his alleged verbal abuse and holding down the leg of an aide, Tina Sanger, at a Garvan Institute dinner.

One of those complaints was from a Government speechwriter who claimed she was bullied by Mr Stewart in 2000. Ms Rhiannon said she was attempting to refer the matter to the barrister Chris Ronalds, SC, who is investigating Mr Stewart's conduct towards Ms Sanger.

The Herald has also learnt that a police commander asked for a transfer from Campsie because he was worn out from a campaign of complaints Mr Stewart was carrying out against him. John Honeysett was local area commander at Campsie when he became the subject of complaints from Mr Stewart after he investigated a bizarre incident involving Mr Stewart in 1997 in which the MP claimed his car was shot at.

Mr Stewart later said police had found his car must have been hit by a slingshot or a blunt instrument. But Mr Stewart took Mr Honeysett to the ombudsman and then criticised Mr Honeysett in Parliament for the police handling of the incident, in particular a slow response to his call for help.

The ombudsman ruled in Mr Stewart's favour and he received an apology from then deputy police commissioner Jeff Jarratt.