Born on August 31, 1955 at Phungani village in Rajasthan’s Sirohi district, Purohit came to Mumbai to study law at Government Law College. He joined student politics with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad during the anti-Emergency protests. His regular political career began with his becoming a corporator from Kalbadevi in 1990, and then a minister during the Shiv Sena government from 1995 to 1999