Two brothers were allegedly attacked with a knife by a group on Harish Mukherjee Road, near SSKM Hospital, when they were returning home after closing their roadside stall in the New Market area late on Saturday.

Two men have been arrested for the alleged attack on Manu Kumar Singh and Ramanuj Singh, police said.

The accused have been identified as Mohammad Javed, 31, and Mohammad Tabrej, 20. Both are from Taltala.

The brothers, residents of New Alipore, suffered multiple cuts and have been admitted to SSKM Hospital. The police said their condition was critical.

Family members said a group of hawkers in the New Market area was demanding extortion money from the brothers.

“Some people are disturbing us. They are demanding money and threatening us that they would not let us run our shop in the New Market area if we do not pay up,” said a brother of the injured duo.

The family has a stall near Treasure Island, a market complex in the New Market area, the police said.

“They are demanding money and anyone who does not pay is being attacked. They (the hawkers who are demanding money) have four-wheelers. They chase their target first and knock him down with their four-wheeler to make it look like an accident. Then they surround the victim and brutally attack him, like they did to my brothers last night,” he said.

The family has lodged a police complaint naming the accused.

A member of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s town vending committee said the clash was the outcome of a dispute between two unions over the location of hawkers on the roads or pavements.

“Recently a drive was launched to remove hawkers from roads and footpaths. But some hawkers have since returned to their old places and formed two groups. One is affiliated to a union that backs hawkers who have their stalls on footpaths. The other looks after the hawkers who are still on the roads. Members of the two unions are locked in a dispute and the attack on the brothers late on Saturday was an outcome of that,” said a senior member of the town vending committee.

Many New Market regulars said such clashes are common in the central Calcutta trading hub. On Saturday morning, a clash broke out between two groups of hawkers who fought to claim their rights to sell their wares on Bertram Street in the New Market area.

The police said the “hawking issue is purely civic in nature”.

“We will act if there is a law and order problem or a specific complaint,” said an officer at New Market police station.

An “attempt to murder” case has been started based on a complaint lodged by the family of Manu Kumar and Ramanuj Singh.

The complaint says the two brothers were returning home on a scooter around midnight when they were intercepted on Harish Mukherjee Road, a few hundred metres from SSKM Hospital, and a group of “30 men” assaulted them with sharp weapons.

Rupesh Kumar, the officiating joint commissioner of police (crime), said the assault was the result of a dispute between the two groups.

The accused have been remanded in police custody till February 25.