List of presidents of India

The president of India is the head of state of the Republic of India and the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. The
president is referred to as the first citizen of India.[1][2] Although vested with these powers by the Constitution of India, the position is
largely a ceremonial one and executive powers are de facto exercised by the prime minister.[3]

Top left: Rajendra Prasad was the first and longest-serving President of India.

Top right: Zakir Husain was the first President from a minority community as well as the shortest-serving President of India.

Bottom left: Pratibha Patil was the first female President of India.

Bottom right: Droupadi Murmu is the current President and the first President from the tribal community.

The president is elected by the Electoral College composed of elected members of the parliament houses, the Lok Sabha and the
Rajya Sabha, and also members of the Saasana Sabha or Vidhan Sabha, the state legislative assemblies.[2] Presidents 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.

There have been 15 presidents of India since the post was established when India was declared as a republic with the adoption of
the Indian constitution in 1950.[4] Apart from these fifteen, three acting presidents have also been in office for short periods of time.
Varahagiri Venkata Giri became the acting president in 1969 after Zakir Husain 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. Rajendra Prasad, the first
president of India, is the only person to have held office for two terms.[5]

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
Husain and Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, have died in office. Their vice presidents served as acting presidents until a new president was
elected. Following Zakir Husain's death, two acting presidents held office until the new president, Varahagiri Venkata Giri, was
elected. When Giri resigned to take part in the presidential elections, he was succeeded by M. Hidayatullah as acting president.[6] The
12th president, Pratibha Devisingh Patil, is the first woman to hold the office, elected in 2007.

On 25 July 2022, Droupadi Murmu took office as the 15th president of India, becoming the second woman and the first tribal person
to hold the office.[7]

List

This list is numbered based on presidents elected after winning an Indian presidential election. The terms of Varahagiri Venkata Giri,
M. Hidayatullah and B. D. Jatti, who served as acting president are therefore not numbered or counted as actual terms in office. The
president of India does not represent any political party. The colors used in the table indicate the following:
Legend

Indian National Congress (INC) (8)

Janata Party (JP) (1)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) (2)
Independent (IND) (4)
Acting President (3)
Key
RES
Resigned
†
Died in office
Term of office
Name
Home Former Time Election Vice Political
No. Portrait Assumed Left Election
(Birth–Death) state Office(s) in Map President party
office office
office

26 January 13 May
Interim 1950 –
1950 1952

Indian
Rajendra Prasad Minister of 13 May 13 May 12 years,
Bihar 1952 National
(1884–1963) Agriculture 1952 1957 107 days
Sarvepalli Congress
1
Radhakrishnan
13 May 13 May
1957
1957 1962

Sarvepalli
Vice President 13 May 13 May
2 Radhakrishnan Tamil Nadu 5 years 1962 Zakir Husain
of India 1962 1967
(1888–1975)

Vice President
of India
Zakir Husain Andhra 13 May 3 May 1 year, Varahagiri
3 1967
(1897–1969) Pradesh Governor of 1967 1969[†] 355 days Venkata Giri
Bihar

Varahagiri
Vice President 20 July
Acting Venkata Giri Odisha 3 May 1969 78 days – – Independent
of India 1969
(1894–1980)

M. Hidayatullah Chief Justice 20 July 24 August

Acting Chhattisgarh 35 days – –
(1905–1992) of India 1969 1969

Vice President
Varahagiri of India
24 August 24 August Gopal Swarup
4 Venkata Giri Odisha 5 years 1969
Governor of 1969 1974 Pathak
(1894–1980)
Kerala

National Gopal Swarup

Fakhruddin Ali 11
Capital Minister of 24 August 2 years, Pathak
5 Ahmed February 1974
Territory of Agriculture 1974 171 days
(1905–1977) 1977[†] B. D. Jatti Indian
Delhi
National
Congress
B.D. Jatti Chief Minister 11 February 25 July
Acting Karnataka 164 days – –
(1912–2002) of Karnataka 1977 1977

B. D. Jatti
Neelam Sanjiva Chief Minister
Andhra 25 July 25 July Janata
6 Reddy of Andhra 5 years 1977 M.
Pradesh 1977 1982 Party
(1913–1996) Pradesh
Hidayatullah

M. Hidayatullah Indian

Giani Zail Singh Chief Minister 25 July 25 July National

7 Punjab 5 years 1982 R. Congress
(1916–1994) of Punjab 1982 1987
Venkataraman

Vice President
R. of India
25 July 25 July Shankar Dayal
8 Venkataraman Tamil Nadu 5 years 1987
Minister of 1987 1992 Sharma
(1910–2009)
Defence

9 Shankar Dayal Madhya Vice President 25 July 25 July 5 years 1992 K. R. Narayanan
Sharma Pradesh of India 1992 1997
(1918–1999)
Term of office
Name
Home Former Time Election Vice Political
No. Portrait Assumed Left Election
(Birth–Death) state Office(s) in Map President party
office office
office

Governor of
Maharashtra

K. R. Narayanan Vice President 25 July 25 July

10 Kerala 5 years 1997 Krishan Kant
(1920–2005) of India 1997 2002

Chief Scientific Krishan Kant

A. P. J. Abdul
Adviser to the 25 July 25 July
11 Kalam Tamil Nadu 5 years 2002 Bhairon Singh Independent
Government of 2002 2007
(1931–2015)
India Shekhawat

Pratibha
Governor of 25 July 25 July
12 Devisingh Patil Maharashtra 5 years 2007
Rajasthan 2007 2012
(1934–Present)

Minister of
Defence Indian

Minister of M. Hamid Ansari National

Pranab Congress
Finance 25 July 25 July
13 Mukherjee West Bengal 5 years 2012
2012 2017
(1935–2020)
Minister of
External
Affairs

M. Hamid Ansari
Ram Nath
Uttar Governor of 25 July 25 July
14 Kovind 5 years 2017 M. Venkaiah
Pradesh Bihar 2017 2022
(1945–Present)
Naidu
Bharatiya
M. Venkaiah Janata
Naidu Party
Droupadi Murmu Governor of 25 July 1 year,
15 Odisha Incumbent 2022
(1958–Present) Jharkhand 2022 350 days Jagdeep
Dhankhar

Statistics

Representation of
presidents by party of
candidacy
Indian National Congress
(53.33%)
Independent (26.67%)
Bharatiya Janata Party
(13.33%)
Janata Party (6.67%)

Timeline
See also

President of India

Vice President of India

Prime Minister of India

List of vice presidents of India

List of prime ministers of India

List of heads of state and government of Indian origin

Citations

1. "President Ram Nath Kovind is India's first citizen. Your chances begin only at Number 27" (http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/president-ram-nat
h-kovind-is-first-citizen-of-india-you-can-hope-to-be-citizen-number-27/1/1011340.html) . indiatoday.com. Times of India. 26 July 2017.
Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20170730214942/http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/president-ram-nath-kovind-is-first-citizen-of-india-y
ou-can-hope-to-be-citizen-number-27/1/1011340.html) from the original on 30 July 2017. Retrieved 19 November 2017.

2. "The Constitution of India" (https://web.archive.org/web/20090205135612/http://lawmin.nic.in/legislative/Art1-242%20(1-88).doc) . Ministry

of Law and Justice of India. Archived from the original (http://lawmin.nic.in/legislative/Art1-242%20(1-88).doc) (.doc) on 5 February 2009.
Retrieved 4 January 2009.

3. "India gets first woman president since independence" (https://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/witn/2007/07/0707

25_india_president.shtml) . BBC News. 25 July 2007. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20090215044650/http://www.bbc.co.uk/worlds
ervice/learningenglish/newsenglish/witn/2007/07/070725_india_president.shtml) from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved
30 November 2008.

4. "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. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20080117080154/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/26/new
sid_3475000/3475569.stm) from the original on 17 January 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2009.

5. Harish Khare (6 December 2006). "Selecting the next Rashtrapati" (https://web.archive.org/web/20110719030328/http://www.hindu.com/200

6/12/06/stories/2006120603561000.htm) . The Hindu. India. Archived from the original (http://www.hindu.com/2006/12/06/stories/200612
0603561000.htm) on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2008.

6. Shekhar Iyer (25 June 2007). "Shekhawat will not resign to contest poll" (https://web.archive.org/web/20090111180014/http://www.hindustan
times.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=&id=2ee3bdc7-6ec2-409a-a4d5-48294361d566&MatchID1=4875&TeamID1=1&TeamID2
=3&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1229&PrimaryID=4875&Headline=Shekhawat+will+not+resign+to+contest+poll) . Hindustan Times. India.
Archived from the original (http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=&id=2ee3bdc7-6ec2-409a-a4d5-482943
61d566&MatchID1=4875&TeamID1=1&TeamID2=3&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1229&PrimaryID=4875&Headline=Shekhawat+will+not+resign+
to+contest+poll) on 11 January 2009. Retrieved 4 January 2009.

7. "Droupadi Murmu oath taking ceremony LIVE updates: Droupadi Murmu takes oath as India's 15th President" (https://timesofindia.indiatimes.c
om/india/newly-elected-president-droupadi-murmu-oath-taking-ceremony-live-updates-july-25/liveblog/93099081.cms) . The Times of India.
25 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.

References

The President of India (official site) (http://presidentofindia.nic.in/)

India portal (official site) (http://www.india.gov.in//)

External links

World Statesmen – India (http://www.worldstatesmen.org/India.htm)

Rulers.org – India (http://rulers.org/ruli.html#india)