Anil Sharma, a minister in the Himachal Pradesh Congress government, will join the Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of the Assembly elections in the state in November, PTI reported. A formal announcement is expected on Sunday in New Delhi.

Sharma holds the Rural Development Ministry in the state. He is expected to resign from the Himacal Pradesh Cabinet position before switching parties. He is the son of former Congress leader Sukh Ram and has been a Rajya Sabha member in the past. He is likely to contest the Assembly elections as a BJP candidate from the Mandi constituency.

Sharma told PTI that he and his father were being sidelined and ignored in the Congress. He alleged that Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi had invited Sukh Ram to attend a rally in Mandi recently, but sent him back when he reached there.

The Assembly elections in Himachal Pradesh are scheduled for November 9.