Over 100 shopkeepers from Andheri (West) staged a protest after traffic between Navrang cinema and SV Road was diverted to begin work on the Metro rail project.
The police detained 17 men and later let them off with a warning.
The shopkeepers, who claimed their businesses would be affected, did not allow workers of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to start the work.
They said the MMRDA had promised to start work after rehabilitating them.
“We were not intimated about the work. They put up barricades on the road on Friday night and diverted traffic,” said Inder Pal Singh, who owns a shop on JP Road.
The MMRDA, however, said rehabilitation would happen after work on the Metro ends.
“All shopkeepers were aware of the project details,” said MMRDA Joint Commissioner Ashwini Bhide.