Shimla: In a major blow to Bharatiya Janata Party, Former Cabinet Minister and BJP State President Khimi Ram joined Congress on Tuesday. He joined the party in the presence of Congress in-charge for Himachal Pradesh Rajiv Shukla in New Delhi.
Khimi Ram is said to be a close associate of former Chief Minister Dr Prem Kumar Dhumal. In 2017, he was not given a ticket to contest in the Vidhan Sabha elections by BJP. However, in September 2021, Khimi Ram had announced to contest the upcoming elections.
Khimi Ram was born in Fagu village in the Kullu district. Before joining active politics, Khimi Ram worked as a teacher in government schools. He was first elected as Zila Parishad in the year 2000. He also became Chairman of Zila Parishad, Kullu in the same year.
In 2003 and 2007, he contested and won elections from Banjar Legislative Assembly Constituency (LAC) as a BJP candidate.
In 2007, he was unanimously elected as the Deputy Speaker of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly. In 2011, he become the Forest Minister in Dr Prem Kumar Dhumal led state government. However, he lost the Vidhan Sabha elections in 2012 to Karan Singh who passed away in 2017.
