Rohtak
Former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said he was a claimant for the post of Chief Minister, though any leader could stake claim to the post after the party came to power in the state.

Addressing a news conference here on Wednesday, Hooda denied the prevalence of factionalism or infighting in the Congress and maintained that all leaders were trying to strengthen the party in their own way.

Asked about the alleged irregularities in the acquisition of farmers’ land during his tenure, Hooda said no farmer’s land had been sold after its acquisition during his two successive tenures.

“Rather, the then INLD-BJP government had acquired farmers’ land at a price of Rs 2 lakh per acre for the KMP Expressway project,” he pointed out.

In response to another question, the Congress leader maintained that he would waive farmers’ loans on coming to power and reduce the interest on long-term loans to 4 per cent.

He claimed that no farmer had committed suicide in Haryana during the 10 years while he was the Chief Minister, nor did he allow the auction of even a single farmer’s land due to non-payment of loan.