The man riding a two-wheeler was stopped near the New Alipore bridge on Friday night by a group of men and allegedly robbed of valuables after he refused to pay ₹5,000 as a subscription for Kali Puja.

Police arrested two men for their alleged involvement in the crime following a complaint lodged with Charu Market police station.

In the complaint, the man told the police that on Friday night, he was driving down New Alipore when a group of youths suddenly appeared from nowhere and stopped him. They demanded ₹5000 as a subscription for Kali Puja.

“The man said that when he told the group of men that he won’t be able to pay the amount because he wasn’t carrying that much cash, the men allegedly assaulted him,” said a senior police officer.

“The victim said his mobile phone was taken away along with whatever amount he was carrying,” said the officer.

After the group left, the man went to Charu Market police station. A team reached the spot and hours later arrested two men.

“The two were produced before the Alipore court on Saturday and remanded in police custody till Tuesday,” said Sourin Ghosal, the chief public prosecutor of Kolkata Police.