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List of Presidents of India

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India. The President is also the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces of India.[1] Although the president is vested such powers by the constitution of India, the position is largely a ceremonial role and the executive powers are de facto exercised by the Cabinet Ministers and Prime Minister.[2] The post of President is known in Hindi as Rashtrapati, a Sanskrit neologism meaning "lord of the realm". The President is elected by an electoral college composed of elected members of the parliament houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, and also members of the Vidhan Sabha, the state legislative assemblies.[1]

There have been 13 Presidents of India since the introduction of the post in 1950. The post was established when India was declared as a republic with the adoption of the Indian constitution.[3] Apart from these twelve, three acting presidents have also been in office for short periods of time. Varahagiri Venkata Giri became Acting President of India in 1969 following the death of Zakir Hussain, who died in office. Giri was elected President a few months later. He remains the only person to have held office both as a president and acting president. The President may remain in office for a tenure of five years, as stated by article 56, part V, of the constitution of India. In the case where a president's term of office is terminated early or during the absence of the president, the vice president assumes office. By article 70 of part V, the parliament may decide how to discharge the functions of the president where this is not possible, or in any other unexpected contingency.[1] Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India, is the only person to have held office for two terms.[4] Seven presidents have been members of a political party before being elected. Six of these were active party members of the Indian National Congress. The Janata Party has had one member, Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, who later became president. Two presidents, Zakir Hussain and Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, have died in office. Their vicepresidents functioned as acting president until a new president was elected. Following Hussain's death, two acting presidents held office until the new president, Varahagiri Venkata Giri, was elected. Varahagiri Venkata Giri himself, Hussain's vice president, was the first acting president. When Giri resigned to take part in the presidential elections, he was superseded by Muhammad Hidayatullah as acting president.[5] The current President is Pranab Mukherjee elected on 25 July 2012. Mukherjee held various posts in the cabinet ministry for the Government of India such as Finance Minister, Foreign Minister, Defence Minister and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission. He originally comes from West Bengal and is also the first Bengali to hold the post of the President.[6] The ex- president, Pratibha Patil, who was in office till 25 July 2012, was elected as the 12th President of India in 2007. She is also the first woman to serve as President of India.[7]

The Main Gate of Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India

Contents
1 Presidents
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2 See also 3 References 4 External links

Presidents
This list is numbered based on Presidents elected after winning an Indian Presidential election. The terms of Varahagiri Venkata Giri, Muhammad Hidayatullah, and Basappa Danappa Jatti, who have functioned as acting presidents, are therefore not numbered. The President of India does not represent any political party. The colours used in the table indicate the following: The symbol (*) with a light brown background indicates an Acting President of India. # Name Portrait Took office Left office Vice President Notes

Rajendra Prasad
(18841963)

26 January 1950

13 May 1962

1952 election page & 1957 election page Prasad was the first President of independent India from Bihar.[8][9] He was also Sarvepalli an independence Radhakrishnan activist of the Indian Independence Movement.[10] Prasad was the only president to serve for two terms in office.[4] 1962 election page Radhakrishnan was a prominent philosopher, writer, a Knight of the Realm and also held the position of vice chancellor of the Zakir Hussain Andhra University and Banaras Hindu University.[11] He was also made a Knight of the Golden Army of Angels by Pope Paul VI.[12]

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
(18881975)

13 May 1962

13 May 1967

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Zakir Hussain
(18971969)

13 May 1967

3 May 1969

Varahagiri Venkata Giri

1967 election page Hussain was vice chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University and a recipient of Padma Vibhushan and Bharat Ratna.[13] He died before his term of office was ended. Giri was appointed as Acting President of India following the death of Hussain.[14] He resigned in a few months to take part in the presidential elections.[5] Hidayatullah served as the Chief Justice of India, and was a recipient of the Order of the British Empire.[15] He served as Acting President of India until the election of Giri as the President of India.

Varahagiri Venkata Giri *

(18941980)

3 May 1969

20 July 1969

Muhammad Hidayatullah *
(19051992)

20 July 1969

24 August 1969

Varahagiri Venkata Giri

(18941980)

24 August 1969

24 August 1974

1969 election page Giri is the only person to have served as both an acting president and president of India. He Gopal Swarup was a recipient of the Pathak Bharat Ratna, and has functioned as Indian Minister of Labour and High Commissioner to Ceylon (Sri Lanka).[16] 1974 election page Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed served as a Minister before being elected as

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Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed

(19051977)

24 August 1974

11 February 1977

Basappa president. He died in Danappa Jatti 1977 before his term of office ended, and was the second Indian president to have died during a term of office.[17] Jatti was the vice president of India during Ahmed's term of office, and was sworn in as Acting President of India upon Ahmed's death. He earlier functioned as the Chief Minister for the State of Mysore.[17][18] 1977 election page N.S.Reddy was the first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh State. Reddy was the only Member of Parliament from the Janata Party to get elected from Andhra Pradesh.[19] He was unanimously elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha on 26 March 1977 and relinquished this office on 13 July 1977 to become the 6th President of India.

Basappa Danappa Jatti *

(19122002)

11 February 1977

25 July 1977

Neelam Sanjiva Reddy

(19131996)

25 July 1977

25 July 1982

Muhammad Hidayatullah

Giani Zail Singh

(19161994)

25 July 1982

25 July 1987

1982 election page In March 1972, Singh assumed the position of Ramaswamy chief Minister of Venkataraman Punjab, and in 1980, he became Union Home Minister.[20] 1987 election page In 1942,

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Ramaswamy Venkataraman
(19102009)

25 July 1987

25 July 1992

Venkataraman was jailed by the British for his involvement in the India's independence movement.[21] After his release, he was elected Shankar Dayal to independent Indias Sharma Provisional Parliament as a member of the Congress Party in 1950 and eventually joined the central government, where he first served as Minister of Finance and Industry and later as Minister of Defence.[22] 1992 election page Sharma was Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, and the Indian Kocheril Raman Minister for Narayanan Communications. He has also served as the governor of Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Maharashtra.[23] 1997 election page Narayanan served as India's ambassador to Thailand, Turkey, China and United States of America. He received doctorates in Krishan Kant Science and Law and was also a chancellor in several universities.[24] He was also the vicechancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University.[25] 2002 election page Kalam, is a scientist

Shankar Dayal Sharma

(19181999)

25 July 1992

25 July 1997

Kocheril Raman 10 Narayanan

(19202005)

25 July 1997

25 July 2002

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11

A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
(1931 )

25 July 2002

25 July 2007

who played a leading role in the development Bhairon Singh of India's ballistic Shekhawat missile and nuclear weapons programs.[26] He also received the Bharat Ratna. Kalam was affectionately known as the People's President.[27][28][29] 2007 election page Patil is the first woman to become the Mohammad President of India. She Hamid Ansari was also the first female Governor of Rajasthan.[30][31] 2012 election page Mukherjee held various posts in the cabinet ministry for the Government of India Mohammad such as Finance Hamid Ansari Minister, Foreign Minister, Defence Minister and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.[32]

12

Pratibha Patil
(1934 )

25 July 2007

25 July 2012

13

Pranab Mukherjee
(1935 )

25 July 2012

Incumbent

See also
Acting President of India

References
General
"Former Presidents" (http://presidentofindia.nic.in/formerpresidents.html) . Presidents Secretariat. http://presidentofindia.nic.in/formerpresidents.html. Retrieved 29 November 2008. "List of Presidents/Vice Presidents" (http://www.eci.gov.in/miscellaneous_statistics/presidents_1952.asp) . Election Commission of India. http://www.eci.gov.in/miscellaneous_statistics/presidents_1952.asp. Retrieved 29 November 2008.

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Specific
1. ^ a b c "The Constitution of India" (http://lawmin.nic.in/legislative/Art1-242%20(1-88).doc) (.doc). Ministry of Law and Justice of India. http://lawmin.nic.in/legislative/Art1-242%20(1-88).doc. Retrieved 4 January 2009. 2. ^ "India gets first woman president since independence" (http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/witn/2007/07/070725_india_president.shtml) . BBC News. 25 July 2007. http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/witn/2007/07/070725_india_president.shtml. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 3. ^ "1950: India becomes a republic" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/26/newsid_3475000/3475569.stm) . BBC News. 26 January 1950. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/26/newsid_3475000/3475569.stm. Retrieved 6 January 2009. 4. ^ a b Harish Khare (6 December 2006). "Selecting the next Rashtrapati" (http://www.hindu.com/2006/12/06/stories/2006120603561000.htm) . The Hindu. India. http://www.hindu.com/2006/12/06/stories/2006120603561000.htm. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 5. ^ a b Shekhar Iyer (25 June 2007). "Shekhawat will not resign to contest poll" (http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=&id=2ee3bdc7-6ec2-409a-a4d548294361d566&MatchID1=4875&TeamID1=1&TeamID2=3&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1229&PrimaryID=487 5&Headline=Shekhawat+will+not+resign+to+contest+poll) . Hindustan Times. India. http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=&id=2ee3bdc7-6ec2-409a-a4d548294361d566&MatchID1=4875&TeamID1=1&TeamID2=3&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1229&PrimaryID=487 5&Headline=Shekhawat+will+not+resign+to+contest+poll. Retrieved 4 January 2009. 6. ^ http://zeenews.india.com/news/exclusive/pranab-mukherjee--the-13th-president-of-india_789045.html 7. ^ "First female president for India" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6909979.stm) . BBC News. 21 July 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6909979.stm. Retrieved 4 December 2008. 8. ^ "Dr. Rajendra Prasad" (http://www.hinduonnet.com/2002/05/07/stories/2002050700690800.htm) . The Hindu. India. 7 May 1952. http://www.hinduonnet.com/2002/05/07/stories/2002050700690800.htm. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 9. ^ "Republic Day" (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,811816,00.html) . Time. 6 February 1950. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,811816,00.html. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 10. ^ "Rajendra Prasad's birth anniversary celebrated" (http://www.hindu.com/2006/12/10/stories/2006121013240200.htm) . The Hindu. India. 10 December 2006. http://www.hindu.com/2006/12/10/stories/2006121013240200.htm. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 11. ^ Ramachandra Guha (15 April 2006). "Why Amartya Sen should become the next president of India" (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060415/asp/opinion/story_6099278.asp) . The Telegraph. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060415/asp/opinion/story_6099278.asp. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 12. ^ "Dr S. Radhakrishnan" (http://www.tribuneindia.com/2000/20000130/spectrum/main2.htm) . The Sunday Tribune. 30 January 2000. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2000/20000130/spectrum/main2.htm. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 13. ^ "Zakir Husain, Dr." (http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/zakir.asp) . Vice President's Secretariat. http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/zakir.asp. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 14. ^ "Shekhawat need not compare himself to Giri: Shashi Bhushan" (http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/12/stories/2007071260671200.htm) . The Hindu. India. 12 July 2007. http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/12/stories/2007071260671200.htm. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 15. ^ "Hidayatullah, Shri M" (http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/hiday.asp) . Vice President's Secretariat. http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/hiday.asp. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 16. ^ "Giri, Shri Varahagiri Venkata" (http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/giri.asp) . Vice President's Secretariat. http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/giri.asp. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 17. ^ a b "Gallery of Indian Presidents" (http://pib.nic.in/archieve/others/gal.html) . Press Information Bureau of the Government of India. http://pib.nic.in/archieve/others/gal.html. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
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18. ^ "Jatti, Shri Basappa Danappa" (http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/jati.asp) . Vice President's Secretariat. http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/jati.asp. Retrieved 30 November 2008. 19. ^ Bhargava, G.S.. "Making of the Prez Congress chief selects PM as well as President" (http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070730/edit.htm) . The Tribune (India). http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070730/edit.htm. Retrieved 6 January 2009. 20. ^ Wolpert, Stanley A. (1999). India (http://books.google.lk/books?id=nHnOERqfMQC&pg=PA217&lpg=PA217&dq=%22Giani+Zail+Singh%22%2Bpunjabi&ct=result#PPA217,M1) . University of California Press. p. 217. http://books.google.lk/books?id=nHnOERqfMQC&pg=PA217&lpg=PA217&dq=%22Giani+Zail+Singh%22%2Bpunjabi&ct=result#PPA217,M1. Retrieved 3 January 2009. 21. ^ Hazarika, Sanjoy (17 July 1987). "Man In The News; India's Mild New President: Ramaswamy Venkataraman" (http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html? res=9B0DEEDD1239F934A25754C0A961948260&n=Top/News/World/Countries%20and%20Territories/India) . The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html? res=9B0DEEDD1239F934A25754C0A961948260&n=Top/News/World/Countries%20and%20Territories/India. Retrieved 6 January 2009. 22. ^ "Venkataraman, Shri R." (http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/venkat.asp) . Vice President's Secretariat. http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/venkat.asp. Retrieved 6 January 2009. 23. ^ Navtej Sarna (27 December 1999). "Former President Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma passes away" (http://www.indianembassy.org/pic/PR_1999/December_99/PR_Dec_27(1)_1999.html) . Embassy of India, Washington D.C.. http://www.indianembassy.org/pic/PR_1999/December_99/PR_Dec_27(1)_1999.html. Retrieved 6 December 2008. 24. ^ "Narayanan, Shri K, R" (http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/krn.asp) . Vice President's Secretariat. http://vicepresidentofindia.nic.in/krn.asp. Retrieved 6 December 2008. 25. ^ "The BJP's aim was to get rid of me" (http://www.nuke.humanrightskerala.com/modules.php? op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=5097) . Confederation of Human Rights Organizations. http://www.nuke.humanrightskerala.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=5097. Retrieved 6 January 2009. 26. ^ Ramana, M. V.; Reddy, C. Rammanohar (2002). Prisoners of the Nuclear Dream (http://books.google.com/books?id=IjZA-bQde1wC&pg=RA1PA169&dq=%22Abdul+Kalam%22+%22%22Pokhran-II%22) . New Delhi: Orient Longman. p. 169. http://books.google.com/books?id=IjZA-bQde1wC&pg=RA1PA169&dq=%22Abdul+Kalam%22+%22%22Pokhran-II%22. 27. ^ Tyagi, Kavita; Misra, Padma. Basic Technical Communication (http://books.google.com/books? id=N3ixJ62qwqcC&pg=PA124) . PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.. p. 124. ISBN 978-81-203-4238-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=N3ixJ62qwqcC&pg=PA124. Retrieved 2 May 2012. 28. ^ "'Kalam was real people's President'" (http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/FullcoverageStoryPage.aspx? id=d1dfada8-d9b3-4783-ad6a-44f56165dd9fWho%20will%20be%20India%27s%20next%20President_Special) . Hindustan Times. Indo-Asian News Service. 24 July 2007. http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/FullcoverageStoryPage.aspx?id=d1dfada8-d9b3-4783-ad6a44f56165dd9fWho%20will%20be%20India%27s%20next%20President_Special. Retrieved 2 May 2012. 29. ^ Perappadan, Bindu Shajan (14 April 2007). "The people's President does it again" (http://www.hindu.com/2007/04/14/stories/2007041411130100.htm) . The Hindu (Chennai, India). http://www.hindu.com/2007/04/14/stories/2007041411130100.htm. Retrieved 2 May 2012. 30. ^ Emily Wax (22 July 2007). "Female President Elected in India" (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2007/07/21/AR2007072100525.html) . The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/21/AR2007072100525.html. Retrieved 2 December 2008. 31. ^ "Pratibha Patil is Rajasthans first woman governor" (http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php? newsid=38190) . Express India. 8 November 2008. http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php? newsid=38190. Retrieved 6 December 2008. 32. ^ http://zeenews.india.com/news/exclusive/pranab-mukherjee--the-13th-president-of-india_789045.html
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External links
Official website of the President of India (http://presidentofindia.nic.in/) Rediff.com Presidents of India (http://im.rediff.com/news/2007/jul/25kbk.gif) The Hindu A presidential poll in the coalition age (http://www.hindu.com/2007/07/18/stories/2007071855791100.htm) Zee News: Former Presidents (http://www.zeenews.com/news383392.html)

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