Sugarcane growers protesting against the state government's "failure" to provide the State Advisory Price from sugar factories today gheraoed Deputy Commissioner N Jayaram and locked his office, preventing entry and exit of staff and visitors.
Police Commissioner S Ravi said a large number of sugarcane growers gheroaed the DC, demanding payment of SAP and locked the office, preventing anyone from either entering or leaving it
Addressing the protestors, farmers' leader Basavaraj Malali flayed the government's "failure" to pay the SAP and demanded that defaulting factories be seized.
"The government should immediately release the SAP for supplying sugarcane to factories in 2013," he said.
Later, speaking to farmers, Jayaram assured them that the administration would effect payment after seizing sugar stocked in the factories for auction.
"We will give 15 days time to sugar factory owners to release SAP due to farmers. If they fail to pay, we will effect payment after seizing the stocks for auction," he said.
Jayaram also said the court has vacated a stay obtained by some sugar factories. The factory owners had moved the court, pleading for a stay on the release of SAP.
The Police Commissioner said no protestors had been detained, but a case has been registered for alleged unlawful assembly and disrupting functioning of government office.
