Asserting that he never twisted the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's statement on the wasteland issue, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam president M Karunanidhi stated on Thursday that he had not said that wasteland was under the possession of the government.

In a statement, he said the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government's budget had spoken about the extent of wasteland in the state and he had only said that this land would be distributed to landless poor.

When confronted with proof, Karunanidhi said, did Jayalalithaa accept the extent of wasteland in the state. Earlier, he alleged that the chief minister had denied the existence of these 55 lakh acres.

"If voted to power, we will bring all the wasteland under the government's control and distribute it to the landless poor," he said.

Jayalalithaa had, on Wednesday, accused Karunanidhi of twisting her statement made in the state Assembly over the wasteland development scheme introduced by her. She has stated that the government did not possess 55 lakh acres of wasteland, as claimed by the octogenarian leader.