List of all Presidents of India Since Independence
Article 52 of the Indian constitution says that there shall be a President of India. Dr. Rajendra Prasad was the first President of India.
Article 74(1) of the Constitution states that there shall be a council of ministers with Prime Minister as its head to aid and advice the President of India.
Prime Minister is the leader of the Cabinet Ministers. The main executive powers of the government are vested in the Prime Minister while the President is the nominal head of the State.
Constitutional Provision:
Article 52 of the Indian constitution says that there shall be a President of India. The executive power of the Union vested in the President.
Position: He is the constitutional head of the parliamentary system of the government. He represents the nation but does not rule it. The real power is in the hands of the council of ministers.
Election: President is elected by the electoral college of (i) elected members of both houses of the Parliament (ii) elected members of state legislatures (iii) elected members of the legislative assemblies of the Delhi and Puducherry (added by 70th amendment Act, 1992).
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Tenure: Elected for five years but eligible for immediate re-election and can serve any number of terms.
Removal: Article 61 says that President can be removed from the post for violation of the constitution before the expiry of his term by the impeachment. This impeachment can be moved in either house of parliament.
Here is the list of all the 13 Presidents of India
| S.N. |
Name |
Tenure |
Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |
Dr. Rajendra Prasad |
26 January 1950 to 12 May 1962 |
First president, longest tenure (12 years) |
| 2. |
13 May 1962 to13 May 1967 |
He was the first President from South India.Teacher's day is celebrated on 5 Sept. to honour his birthday. |
|
| 3. |
Dr. Zakir Hussain |
13 May 1967 to 3 May 1969 |
President with the shortest tenure, first Muslim president to die in harness |
| 4. |
Varahagiri Venkata Giri |
3 May 1969 to 20 July 1969 |
First acting president of India |
|
|
Mohammad Hidayatullah |
20 July 1969 to 24 August 1969 |
Served as the Chief Justice of India, and was a recipient of the Order of the British Empire. |
|
|
Varahagiri Venkata Giri |
24 August 1969 to 24 August 1974 |
Giri is the only person to have served as both an acting president and president of India. |
| 5. |
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed |
24 August 1974 to 11 February 1977 |
second Indian president to die in office. |
|
|
Basappa Danappa Jatti |
11 February 1977 to 25 July 1977 |
Served as acting President of India upon Ahmed's death |
| 6. |
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy |
25 July 1977 to 25 July 1982 |
Youngest to become president @ 64 yr, the first president who did not become vice -president |
| 7. |
Giani Zail Singh |
25 July 1982 to 25 July 1987 |
First Sikh President |
| 8. |
Ramaswamy Venkataraman
|
25 July to 1987 25 July 1992 |
Oldest to become President @ 76 yr |
| 9. |
Shankar Dayal Sharma |
25 July 1992 to 25 July 1997 |
Sharma was Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh |
| 10. |
Kocheril Raman Narayanan |
25 July 1997 to 25 July 2002 |
He was the first President from Kerala, and also the first Dalit President. |
| 11. |
25 July 2002 to 25 July 2007 |
He was the first bachelor/Scientist president of India and the first Muslim President who completed his term. |
|
| 12. |
Pratibha Patil |
25 July 2007 to25 July 2012 |
The first woman to become the President of India. |
| 13. |
From 5 July 2012, Incumbent |
Served as the Foreign Minister, Defence Minister and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission. |
|
| 14. | Ram Nath Kovind | 25 July 2017--Incumbent | 14th President of India |
Seven Presidents have been members of a political party before being elected. Six of these were active party members of the Congress Party. Dr. Rajendra Prasad (first President of India) is the only person to have held office for two terms.
Incumbent President Ram Nath Kovind was the Governor of Bihar before becoming the President of India. This list of all the Presidents of India is very important for all the competitive exams.
