'Fictional, Unfounded': BJP Denies Reports Of New Portfolio Offer To Dharmendra Pradhan
'Fictional, Unfounded': BJP Denies Reports Of New Portfolio Offer To Dharmendra Pradhan Written By, Last Updated: July 28, 2026, 14:49 IST The clarification comes days
'Fictional, Unfounded': BJP Denies Reports Of New Portfolio Offer To Dharmendra Pradhan Written By, Last Updated: July 28, 2026, 14:49 IST The clarification comes days after Pradhan resigned as education minister and Union minister Pralhad Joshi assumed additional charge of the Education Ministry Rapid Read Dharmendra Pradhan. (PTI File) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday dismissed reports claiming that the Centre had offered former Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan another Cabinet portfolio after his resignation, describing the speculation as “fictional" and “unfounded". Addressing reporters, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra said there was no truth to media reports suggesting that Pradhan had been offered a different ministry as part of negotiations following his exit from the Union Cabinet. “There is no basis to these reports. They are completely fictional and unfounded," Patra said, rejecting speculation over any portfolio change. The clarification comes days after Pradhan resigned as education minister, with the President accepting his resignation on the advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Union minister Pralhad Joshi has since been given additional charge of the Education Ministry. Pradhan’s resignation was the main demand of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), which has been leading a massive protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar for more than a month. The talks between the CJP and Centre were deadlocked over Pradhan’s resignation. Taking to social media after his resignation, Pradhan said he had been dedicated to students, teachers and educational reforms for more than four decades and expressed gratitude to PM Modi for allowing him to serve as education minister. “The developments of the last 10 days have saddened me. This is not a matter of personal prestige for me. India’s youth power is the true strength of this country," he said. He then added: “Considering the situation that has emerged at Jantar Mantar and across the country, and keeping in mind that anti-national forces should not take advantage of it, that the unity of the country remains intact, that the future of even a single Indian student is not entangled in legal complications, and that our children focus their time on studies and building their careers, I have sent my resignation to the Honourable Prime Minister." Reports had claimed that Pradhan was initially offered another portfolio after stepping down but had declined the proposal.
The BJP has now categorically denied those claims, insisting no such offer was made. While the BJP has maintained that the government’s focus remains on education reforms and restoring the integrity of public examinations, the party has urged against what it termed “baseless speculation" surrounding Cabinet deliberations. The Centre has simultaneously sought to signal a broader course correction on examination reforms. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a high-powered task force headed by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani to overhaul the country’s public examination system. The panel has been tasked with recommending technology-driven measures to make examinations more secure, transparent and tamper-proof, strengthen governance of testing agencies, improve cybersecurity, enhance data protection and identity verification, and create mechanisms to detect and prevent question paper leaks. The government has also introduced amendments to the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, proposing stricter penalties for organised exam fraud and granting investigators wider powers to tackle paper leak rackets. News18 Newsletter Handpicked stories, in your inbox A newsletter with the best of our journalism submit About the Author Apoorva Misra Apoorva Misra is a News Editor at News18.com with a keen interest in politics and current affairs.
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