Pralhad Joshi gets education ministry charge as Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation accepted

President Droupadi Murmu has accepted Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation as education minister, and Pralhad Joshi will be getting the education ministry's charge.Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi, Dharmendra Pradhan seen together (PTI File photo)The development comes hours after Pradhan announced he has tendered resignation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.“The President of India, as advised by the Prime Minister, has accepted the resignation of Shri Dharmendra Pradhan from the Union Council of Ministers, with immediate effect, under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution of India. Further, as advised by the Prime Minister, the President has directed that Shri Pralhad Joshi, Cabinet Minister, be assigned the charge of the Ministry of Education, in addition to his existing portfolio,” a government release read.Who is Pralhad Joshi?Pralhad Venkatesh Joshi is currently the Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution & New and Renewable Energy. After Pradhan's resignation, he will also be getting education ministry's charge.He returned to PM Modi's cabinet in 2024. He has been a Member of Parliament five times and is known as the ‘blue-eyed boy’ within the BJP high command.Joshi was born into a traditional North Karnataka Brahmin family in November 1962. He entered national politics in 2004 with his election to the 14th Lok Sabha. He got associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) at a young age and rose through the ranks in the BJP later.Why Dharmendra Pradhan resignedDharmendra Pradhan's resignation announcement came amid massive students protests over the NEET-UG paper leak and other alleged exam irregularities. In a letter shared on X, Pradhan said he was making the move for students and their future. "...To ensure that anti-national elements are not benefitted by the situation at Jantar Mantar and across the country, that the nation remains united, students in India do not get tangled in legal complexities and focus on their studies and their career, I have tendered my resignation to the Prime Minister...," the letter reads.