Police try to stop RJD MLA Dinesh Kumar Singh from carrying a gunnysack of fertilisers into the Assembly on Friday. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

The protest plans of an RJD legislator, notorious for smuggling prohibited things into the Assembly, were purged by alert security personnel on Friday but not before some histrionics.

Dinesh Kumar Singh, the people’s representative from Jagdishpur in Bhojpur district, entered the Assembly premises carrying a gunnysack of fertilisers on the first day of the monsoon session. His plan: to protest against the failure of the government to provide quality fertilisers to farmers.

Using props to stage his Assembly protests is not an innovation for Singh. He had earlier bought bottles of liquor and CDs of raunchy songs to protest against their easy availability. Legislators are not supposed to take anything into the Assembly except documents related to proceedings.

This time though, the legislator with a hidden actor in him did not succeed in staging his dramatic protest.

As he was walking into the House around 10.44am with a banner slung over his shoulders and a gunnysack of fertilisers in his hand, the policemen in charge of security ran to stop him. Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manu Maharaj was also present on the spot.

Maharaj tried to snatch the bag from the MLA. Dinesh was not ready to let go of it. A tussle ensued. As if almost on cue, it also started to rain.

But none of the actors was willing to make an exit. After pulling and pushing for nearly five minutes, the security personnel — who had the numbers on their side — managed to take possession of the bag.

An outraged Singh started to shout: “How can the police stop me from protesting? It is my right!”

He said: “I just want to raise the curtains on corruption in the agriculture department. Poor farmers are being fooled. The government is giving them bags of soil instead of fertilisers. There is no monitoring in the department.”

Singh had other impromptu dialogue up his sleeves. “The government claims that it is ushering in a green revolution in the state but it is doing nothing.”

There is a double layer of security at the Assembly: one outside the gate; the other in front of the building where the cars are searched.

Asked how he managed to hoodwink security till the last minute, Dinesh said: “I was sitting on the bag. The security personnel cannot ask me to get out of the car.”

Perhaps they will next time, Mr Legislator.