App-cab drivers blocked the airport entrance for nearly an hour on Monday to protest alleged fraudulent collection of parking charges from them.

The rulebook says parking fee will be waived for all vehicles that spend 10 minutes or less in the airport but drivers of commercial vehicles have been complaining that they are being made to pay the minimum charge of Rs 100 even if they spend less than the stipulated time on the premises.

According to drivers, the toll-booth employees tamper with timings to collect the fee.

The matter reached a flashpoint on Monday morning when some drivers were allegedly beaten up by employees of the agency that runs the toll booth following an altercation over payment of the fee.

Babulal Yadav, who runs the agency, and Dinesh Yadav, an employee, were arrested after drivers lodged a complaint with airport police station.

"Around 6am, an app cab driver had refused to pay the fee claiming that he had spent less than 10 minutes on the premises. The agency employees beat him up. When other drivers tried to intervene, they too were assaulted," said a police officer. Many other passengers walked with their luggage to the terminal because of the agitation. staged a blockade at the entrance to Calcutta airport on Monday morning alleging that the toll booth staff were charging them Rs 100 even if they had spent less than the time stipulated by the airport authorities for free parking. The drivers staged a blockade near the entrance to the airport for nearly an hour, forcing fliers to walk for half a kilometre to catch flights. which was triggered by two orders issued by the airport authorities, one of which said that all commercial vehicles entering the airport to pick up passengers would have to pay Rs 100 as parking fee, irrespective of whether they spent 10 minutes or less inside. "But the agency collecting parking fees has found out a way to take money from us. They are forcing us to pay Rs 100 even if we have spent much less than that," alleged one driver of a commercial vehicle.