Prem Kumar Dhumal: Five lesser-known facts about BJP's CM candidate for Himachal

New Delhi: The Bhartiya Janata Party has named veteran politician Prem Kumar Dhumal as its chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Himachal Pradesh elections. The seasoned campaigner has been the CM of the state twice - in 1998 and 2007.

By naming Dhumal as the chief ministerial candidate once again, the BJP - political experts say - is looking at a big name and face to bring down Virbhadra Singh who has been in power since 2012 and has also had several stints before. Dhumal - much like Virbhadra Singh - has been a political heavyweight in the state since he joined BJP back in 1982.

* Dhumal was born in 1944 in Hamirpur district. He holds an MA and LLB degree and was a lecturer in a private college before joining politics.

* He joined BJP in 1982. Two years later, he was named as the candidate for Hamirpur constituency. He lost that election but returned to win it in 1989 and 1991. He once again lost the seat in 1996.

* Dhumal was BJP chief for Himachal in 1993 and became CM for the first time in 1998. He was also called 'Sadakwalla CM' because of his focus on developing roads and other infrastructure projects. His second term as CM began from 2008.

* He has faced allegations of corruption after certain reports emerged in the run up to state elections in 2012 that he had commercial dealings, had sold off prime land to outsiders. On the flipside, he has been credited for having promoted e-governance and education.

* He has two sons - Arun and Anurag. Anurag Thakur is a member of Lok Sabha from Hamirpur.