Dehradun: In a major setback for the Uttarakhand Congress former Chief Minister ND Tiwari a die hard congress vetran for the past 53 years switched allegiance to BJP. Apart from being a 3 time Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, ND Tiwari is the only Chief Minster to complete his term since the formation of Uttarakhand. Nonagenarian leader joined BJP along with his son Rohit Shekhar who insiders believe will get the ticket from Haldwani. The BJP are yet to release the second list of candidates.
While the veteran, who has been unwell since the last few days, is yet to interact with media, sources maintained that senior BJP members were in touch with him and his family. Although ND Tiwari has been away from active politics for quite some time due to his age, he is still a prominent figure in the hill state.
Tiwari started his career with the Praja Samajwadi Party and was elected MLA from Nainital in 1952 and won the seat again in 1957. In 1963, Tiwari joined Congress and won the assembly election from the Kashipur constituency.