Dehradun: A Congress legislator staged a dramatic protest outside the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly in Dehradun on Monday, overturning a trolley loaded with sugarcane at the main gate to draw attention to long-pending cane payment dues owed by Iqbalpur Sugar Mill to farmers in the state.

Virender Kumar Jati, the Congress Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Jhabrera, arrived at the assembly’s main entrance with the cane-laden trolley and overturned it on the road, scattering sugarcane and temporarily disrupting traffic in the area. The incident occurred just ahead of a one-day special session of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly that had been convened to discuss women’s reservation and the rights of women in democracy. Police and administrative officials on duty quickly brought the situation under control and cleared the road.

Jati clarified that his intent was not to challenge security arrangements but to bring the plight of sugarcane farmers to the government’s attention. He alleged that Iqbalpur Sugar Mill owed approximately Rs 110 crore in outstanding dues to cane farmers in the state, and that despite repeated demands from farmers and elected representatives, neither the mill management nor the state government had taken any concrete action to resolve the matter. He said farmers were sinking into financial hardship as a result of the continued non-payment.