Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Sunday asked his Cabinet colleague Anil Sharma to clarify whether he would quit the government to campaign for his son and Congress candidate for the Mandi Lok Sabha seat or support the BJP candidate there.

Mr. Thakur took the tough stand and sought ab explanation from Mr. Sharma, the State Power Minister, days after his father and former Union Telecom Minister Sukh Ram joined the Congress along with his grandson Aashray Sharma, who has been given a Congress ticket from Mandi.

The Chief Minister sought Mr. Sharma’s explanation while talking to reporters at Paonta on his way to electioneering in Uttarakhand.

Mr. Thakur said his Cabinet colleague must clear the “political cloud” hovering over him on who would he campaign for — his son or BJP candidate Ram Swaroop Sharma — in Mandi.

Mr. Sharma must decide at the earliest whether he would join the Congress to help his son in the upcoming election or campaign for the BJP candidate in Mandi, said the Chief Minister.

He made it clear that if Mr. Sharma campaigns for his son, he will have to lose his Cabinet post and membership of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly.

Nobody should have any doubt on this point, he added.

The Chief Minister also refuted speculation over difference of opinion in the BJP on the issue of Mr. Sharma.

‘No second opinion’

He said there was no second opinion on this issue in the party and what he was saying was the unanimous view of the party.

Mr. Thakur also expressed confidence that the BJP will retain all the four parliamentary seats in Himachal Pradesh, increasing the BJP’s victory margin over them, including the Mandi seat, which is seen as his home turf.