In a major jolt to the ruling BJP in Uttarakhand, a senior cabinet minister in the Pushkar Singh Dhami government, Yashpal Arya along with his son Sanjiv Arya, also a sitting BJP MLA from Nainital, joined the Congress on Monday.

Yashpal Arya, who was transport minister in the Uttarakhand government, is a prominent Dalit face in the Kumaon region.

Yashpal was among the Congress rebels who had revolted against Harish Rawat in 2016 and had joined hands with the BJP.

The father-son duo joined the Congress in New Delhi in the presence of the party’s general secretary K C Venugpoal, former CM Harish Rawat and Uttarakhand Congress in-charge Devender Yadav.

A four-time MLA Yashpal Arya has served as a cabinet minister in the Vijay Bahuguna and Harish Rawat governments from 2012 to 2017.

A political heavyweight, Yashpal was the Uttarakhand Congress chief between 2007 and 2014. During the ND Tiwari government, he served as the state assembly speaker from March 15, 2002 to March 11, 2007.

The speculations of Yashpal joining the Congress had gathered steam after CM Pushkar Singh Dhami recently visited his Dehradun residence for a breakfast meeting. (TOI)