Waiver of Rs 16 lakh penal rent of Hooda’s house on Cabinet agenda

The state Cabinet will take up the proposal of waiver of penal rent of Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda’s house in Chandigarh, amounting to over Rs 16 lakh.

A source in the Public Works Department, however, said there was no proposal from their department, but the government had inquired about it.

Hooda has been residing in the government bungalow meant for the Leader of Opposition since the poll results were declared in October 2024, though he was appointed to the post in September 2025. He was entitled for a flat during the intervening period.

Hooda said, “When there was no Leader of Opposition at that time, I had requested extension of stay in the house. It is a small matter.”

Meanwhile, AAP national media incharge Anurag Dhanda on Monday attacked Hooda, alleging that the government was waiving the penal rent for the favour Hooda extended to the BJP during the Rajya Sabha (RS) polls. “The BJP has now rewarded its ‘sleeper cell’ Hooda. This indicates a deal between the BJP and Congress, as has happened many times before,” he said.

The RS polls were the biggest example of this, where Independent candidates consistently win, despite Congress’s numerical strength, he added.

He said the state Congress leadership had become a puppet dancing to the BJP’s tunes. He claimed that many Congress MLAs voted where the BJP wanted them to. “Hooda had been facing serious legal cases. He appears compelled to bow before the government,” he alleged.