LUCKNOW: In yet another blow to Samajwadi Pary, Shiv Kumar Beria, who was a minister in the Akhilesh Yadav government, joined BJP on Monday.
Considered close to Akhilesh’s uncle Shivpal Yadav, Beria has been a five-time MLA. In 2012, he won from Rasulabad reserved seat (Kanpur rural). In 2017, however, he was denied a ticket by Akhilesh, who took complete control of the party after a rift in the Yadav family surfaced just before the elections.