Pralhad Joshi was in Dharwad in Karnataka, well over a thousand kilometres away from Jantar Mantar, when the reverberations emanating from the protest site in the National Capital reached him. Sources said the government leadership informed Joshi that he had been given additional charge of the Ministry of Education following Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation hours earlier. Joshi rushed back to Delhi, taking a 7.30 pm flight from Hubballi, and took charge of the ministry on Sunday.“Today, I assumed charge as the Union Minister for Education. I am grateful to Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji for placing his faith in me and entrusting me with this responsibility. I accept it with humility and a deep sense of duty,” Joshi posted on X.AdvertisementThough the Union Minister — who is in charge of the Consumer Affairs, and Food and Public Distribution ministries — may turn out to be an interim arrangement, it marks an important chapter in his political career and illustrates the faith the party and government have in him. After taking charge, he immediately called for a meeting with officials of the National Testing Agency (NTA), which is at the centre of a paper leak controversy, at his residence on Sunday evening.The man from DharwadThe 63-year-old Joshi is a veteran of Karnataka BJP, whose career began with his association with the RSS at a young age. Joshi was among the several BJP leaders who became known names overnight following the Idgah Maidan agitation in Hubballi in 1994. Six people died in police firing when a group of protesters led by BJP leader Uma Bharati tried to forcibly hoist the Tricolour at the Idgah ground, defying a curfew.The incident, dubbed the “mini Ayodhya” of Karnataka, led to communal flare-ups in Hubballi city and over the long term helped the BJP expand its footprint in North Karnataka, a key step in its eventual rise to power in the state. Joshi served as the BJP’s Dharwad district president from 1995 to 1998 and the BJP’s general secretary in the same district from 1998 to 2003.AdvertisementOne of the Karnataka BJP’s important Brahmin leaders, he was rewarded with the ticket from Dharwad North the following year. He has not lost a parliamentary election since then. Since Dharwad North ceased to exist following the 2008 delimitation, Joshi has been representing Dharwad in Parliament.Joshi was close to former Union Minister Ananth Kumar, one of the key figures who orchestrated the BJP’s rise in Karnataka, and when the party faced a major crisis in 2013 following the exit of former CM and BJP veteran B S Yediyurappa, he was placed at the helm of the state unit. He remained in the position till 2016.Since Ananth Kumar died in 2018, Joshi has become the state BJP’s point-person in Delhi. In 2019, he was appointed the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and the Minister of Coal and Mines. His continued importance in Karnataka politics was apparent when, in 2021, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai attended the wedding functions of Joshi’s daughter in Hubballi, Bengaluru, and New Delhi. He is also associated with a mid-day meals project for primary schools in Karnataka.In Modi 3.0In PM Modi’s third term, Joshi was handed the responsibility of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, and the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. As the Food Minister, he is involved in administering the biggest welfare program: Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, as per the provisions of the National Food Security Act, 2013. As the Renewable Energy Minister, he has been responsible for rolling out the PM Surya Ghar Yojana, one of the most ambitious programs of the Modi government.you may likeAs the Consumer Affairs Minister, Joshi has a crucial role in monitoring prices and managing the supply of essential items. He is one of the members of the Inter-Ministerial Group, headed by Home Minister Amit Shah, which evaluates the price situation of essential commodities and recommends policy decisions.Before he was handed charge of the Education Ministry, there was speculation in the corridors of power that Joshi could be sent back to Karnataka to handle the state BJP again, putting the house in order after years of factional feuds. The incident of cross-voting during the recent Rajya Sabha polls and continuing fights between state BJP leaders have raised questions about the current leadership’s ability to rein everyone in and fight the Congress on a united front. Joshi’s conflict resolution skills were on display in 2024 when he played a crucial role in resolving the concerns of farmers protesting at the Shambhu border between Haryana and Delhi.In 2023, before the Janata Dal (Secular) allied with the BJP, Joshi’s current Cabinet colleague and JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy took a dig at him by distinguishing between “divisive Brahmin leaders” such as him and those from South Karnataka. The comment was made ahead of the 2023 Assembly polls, when there was speculation that Joshi could be made the CM if the party won the polls.