Dharmendra Pradhan's impressive CV: Why BJP chose Union minister to lead Bihar campaign

Dharmendra Pradhan (Image: PTI)

The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday named senior leader and union minister Dharmendra Pradhan -- trusted aide of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah -- as its poll in-charge for Bihar ahead of Assembly election.

Pradhan, who has previously delivered notable successes for the party in states like Odisha and Haryana, will once again be responsible to prove his mettle in the crucial Bihar polls – which, if succeeds, would set the tone for 2026 Assembly polls in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and other states.

From Uttarakhand to Odisha and Haryana: Pradhan’s notable poll successes

Over the years, Dharmendra Pradhan has emerged as the saffron party’s choice of person for crucial states and electoral battles.

A testament to his political acumen was the 2021 Nandigram contest in West Bengal. While the BJP fell short statewide, Pradhan’s skills and persistence enabled Suvendu Adhikari to edge out Mamata Banerjee by a margin of over 1,700 votes.

As BJP’s in-charge for Uttarakhand in 2017 Assembly polls, Pradhan led the party to a comfortable victory – bagging 57 seats in the 70-member Assembly. Five years later came another milestone under Pradhan’s leadership -- an emphatic victory in Uttar Pradesh, where the BJP bagged 255 of 403 seats. The win ensured Yogi Adityanath’s re-election, making him the state’s first chief minister to secure a second term after completing a full one.

Prior to the Haryana polls, Pradhan was made BJP’s election in-charge in Odisha, where the party formed the government for the first time after defeating Naveen Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal (BJD). The BJP leader was closely involved in shaping the party’s manifesto and election campaigning.

Pradhan’s hat-trick magic in Haryana

Having delivered crucial wins for the BJP, it was no surprise that Pradhan was entrusted the crucial state of Haryana last year -- where the party had been grappling with anti-incumbency and anger from Jats, farmers, and army hopefuls opposed to the Agniveer scheme.

However, the 55-year-old leader, an OBC face, was hopeful of turning the tide in the party’s favour. Pradhan went in for a ground-centric approach, taking real-time feedback and informing the leadership.

"He would go to ground zero and hold small meetings... he would take real time feedback from the workers and inform the leadership and rectify the shortcomings immediately. He also pacified the angry people in Haryana, identified the weak booths and adopted strong workers from other parties," a BJP leader told NDTV, in the context of Pradhan’s efforts.

Sources in the BJP noted that he defused much of the discord over the candidates’ list, bringing the number of rebels down from roughly 25 to just three by the withdrawal deadline.

His efforts bore results -- with the BJP securing a third consecutive term in Haryana, winning 48 out of 90 Assembly seats. The Congress followed with 37 seats.

From ABVP to Modi’s trusted lieutenant

With a reputation for strong organisational acumen, Dharmendra Pradhan has come to be recognised as Modi’s “Ujjwala Man.” Son of former union minister of state for surface transport, Debendra Pradhan, Dharmendra steered Modi government’s most significant social initiative of proving free cooking gas (LPG) connection to poor women which eventually helped the party build a base in rural hinterland.

He was also instrumental in navigating the challenges posed by the NET-NEET paper-leak issue.

Dharmendra began his political journey with the ABVP in 1983 and made his electoral debut in the year 2000, contesting from Pallalhara, his home constituency. Even as he was just an activist by that time, reports suggest that Naveen Patnaik saw him as a potential threat.

Following the NDA’s 2014 victory led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Pradhan was named petroleum minister with independent charge. By 2017, he had been elevated to the cabinet and given the added responsibility of skill development.

Pradhan has created a history for being the longest serving minister for petroleum and natural gas in the history of independent India.

He was an ABVP cadre and a member of the Sangh Parivar, following in the footsteps of his father, Debendra Pradhan, who was a minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Cabinet.