A man who had gone to recover a debt on behalf of a finance company at a north Calcutta house was allegedly assaulted by a member of the family.

The recovery agent, Saurangshu Chatterjee, 24, is an employee of a loan recovery company and went to the house of a woman who had taken a vehicle loan. She allegedly failed to pay two instalments amounting to ₹31,000.

“I went to her registered address on Belgachhia Road on Sunday afternoon. As I pressed the calling bell, a man stepped out. When I asked about the woman in whose name the loan was sanctioned, the man said she did not stay there. After I showed him the registered address, he grabbed my throat and pinned me to the grille behind me,” Chatterjee alleged.

Chatterjee claimed that, following his company’s policy, he went to meet the debtor only after she allegedly failed to answer the calls from his office.

He said that the man later admitted that the woman Chatterjee was looking for was his daughter.

“This man claimed that his daughter stayed in Ultadanga. He, however, refused to share her address,” Chatterjee alleged.

His screams alerted neighbours in the congested locality. However, no one reportedly came to his rescue, and Chatterjee had to flee the spot. He went to Ultadanga police station to report the alleged attack.

The police have drawn up a formal case under sections of wrongful restraint and voluntarily causing hurt against the alleged attacker, a 60-year-old man.

Complaints of harassment by recovery agents are not uncommon in the city.

There are numerous cases of loan defaulters being hounded by recovery agents, also known as “collection agents”, sent by agencies hired by banks and finance companies.

However, the police said, a recovery agent getting heckled and lodging a police complaint is relatively rare.

Chatterjee said that according to his company’s rules, if a customer (of their clients, the finance companies) fails to pay their EMI within the third day of the month, a call is made to “politely remind” them about the due.

“If the person does not take calls, the agency sends a representative for physical verification of the address. I was verifying the woman’s address when I was heckled,” Chatterjee said.

“We have received a complaint. The accused is a senior citizen. A probe is on,” said a senior police officer.