List of presidents of India

This article is part of a series on the

Politics of India

* Constitution and  law

* Constitution of India

* Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and
Fundamental Duties of India
* Human rights
* Judicial review
* Taxation
* Uniform Civil Code
* Basic structure doctrine
* Amendment

* * *

* Law of India

* * *

* Indian criminal law

* Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
* Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita
* Bharatiya Sakshya Act, 2023

Government

* * *

* President of India

* Droupadi Murmu

* Vice President of India

* Jagdeep Dhankhar

* * *

* Prime Minister of India

* Narendra Modi (BJP)

* * *

* Cabinet secretary

* Rajiv Gauba (IAS)

* * *

* Union Council of Ministries

* List of ministers

* * *

* Government Departments

* List of secretaries

Parliament

* Parliament of India

* * *

* Lok Sabha

* Speaker Om Birla (BJP)

* Deputy Speaker Vacant

* Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh (IAS)

* House Leader Narendra Modi (BJP)

* Opposition Leader Vacant

* Members of Lok Sabha

* * *

* Rajya Sabha

* Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar

* Deputy Speaker Harivansh Narayan Singh
* Secretary General Pramod Chandra Mody

* House Leader Piyush Goyal (BJP)

* Opposition Leader Mallikarjun Kharge (INC)

* Members of Rajya Sabha

* * *

* Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs

Pralhad Joshi

Judiciary

* Supreme Court of India

* Chief Justice  Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud

* Justice of the Supreme Court (List)

* Secretary General of Supreme Court Atul M. Kurhekar

* * *

* District Courts
* High Courts
* Lok Adalat

* Gram Nyayalayas
* Nyaya panchayat
* Other tribunals

* * *

* Ministry of Law and Justice

* Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal

* * *

* Bar Council of India

* Attorney-General R. Venkataramani
* Solicitor General Tushar Mehta
* Additional Solicitor General of India

Elections and political parties

* Presidential elections

* 2022
* 2017
* 2012

* Vice Presidential elections

* 2022
* 2017
* 2012

* * *

* Lok Sabha Election (General elections)

* 2014
* 2019
* 2024

* Parliamentary constituencies

* Rajya Sabha Election

* 2024
* 2023
* 2022

* Seats of State of Council

* * *

* State Assembly elections

* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024

* * *

* Political parties

* National coalitions
* National Democratic Alliance (NDA)
* Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA)

* * *

* National parties
* State parties

* * *

* Electoral College (India)
* Election Commission of India
* State election commission (India)

Administrative divisions

* States

* Andhra Pradesh
* Arunachal Pradesh
* Assam
* Bihar
* Chhattisgarh
* Goa
* Gujarat
* Haryana
* Himachal Pradesh
* Jharkhand
* Karnataka
* Kerala
* Madhya Pradesh
* Maharashtra
* Manipur
* Meghalaya
* Mizoram
* Nagaland
* Odisha
* Punjab
* Rajasthan
* Sikkim
* Tamil Nadu
* Telangana
* Tripura
* Uttar Pradesh
* Uttarakhand
* West Bengal

* Union territories

* Andaman and Nicobar Islands
* Chandigarh
* Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu
* Delhi
* Jammu and Kashmir
* Ladakh
* Lakshadweep
* Puducherry

* Capitals of State and Union Territory

* Divisions
* Districts
* Sub-Districts
* Community development block
* Autonomous administrative divisions
* Proposed states and union territories

Federalism

* Executive

* Governors (List)
* Lieutenant governor and administrators(List)
* Chief minister(List)
* Deputy chief ministers(List)
* Ministries of All State and U.T. governments

* Legislative

* State legislative councils
* State legislative assemblies

* Speakers(List)
* Official Opposition(List)

* Judiciary

* High Courts

* Chief justices of High courts

* Judges of high courts

* * *

* Local government
* District court(List)

India portal

* Other countries

* v
* t
* e

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]

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[edit]

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

|

No.  | Portrait  | Name

(Birth–Death)

| Home state  | Former Office(s)  | Term of office  | Election  | Vice President | Political party

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Assumed office  | Left office  | Time in office
Interim  |  | Rajendra Prasad
(1884–1963) | Bihar | Minister of Agriculture | 26 January 1950  | 13 May 1952  | 12 years, 107 days  | 1950 | –  | Indian National Congress |
1  | 13 May 1952  | 13 May 1957  | 1952 | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
13 May 1957  | 13 May 1962  | 1957
2  |  | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
(1888–1975) | Tamil Nadu | Vice President of India | 13 May 1962  | 13 May 1967  | 5 years  | 1962 | Zakir Husain | Independent |
3  |  | Zakir Husain
(1897–1969) | Andhra Pradesh | Vice President of India

Governor of Bihar

| 13 May 1967  | 3 May 1969[†] | 1 year, 355 days  | 1967 | Varahagiri Venkata Giri
Acting  |  | Varahagiri Venkata Giri
(1894–1980) | Odisha | Vice President of India | 3 May 1969  | 20 July 1969  | 78 days  | –  | –
Acting  |  | M. Hidayatullah
(1905–1992) | Chhattisgarh | Chief Justice of India | 20 July 1969  | 24 August 1969  | 35 days  | –  | –
4  |  | Varahagiri Venkata Giri
(1894–1980) | Odisha | Vice President of India

Governor of Kerala

| 24 August 1969  | 24 August 1974  | 5 years  | 1969 | Gopal Swarup Pathak
5  |  | Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed
(1905–1977) | National Capital Territory of Delhi | Minister of Agriculture | 24 August 1974  | 11 February 1977[†] | 2 years, 171 days  | 1974 | Gopal Swarup Pathak

* * *

B. D. Jatti

| Indian National Congress |
Acting  |  | B.D. Jatti
(1912–2002) | Karnataka | Chief Minister of Karnataka | 11 February 1977  | 25 July 1977  | 164 days  | –  | –
6  |  | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy
(1913–1996) | Andhra Pradesh | Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh | 25 July 1977  | 25 July 1982  | 5 years  | 1977 | B. D. Jatti

* * *

M. Hidayatullah

| Janata Party |
7  |  | Giani Zail Singh
(1916–1994) | Punjab | Chief Minister of Punjab | 25 July 1982  | 25 July 1987  | 5 years  | 1982 | M. Hidayatullah

* * *

R. Venkataraman

| Indian National Congress |
8  |  | R. Venkataraman
(1910–2009) | Tamil Nadu | Vice President of India

Minister of Defence

| 25 July 1987  | 25 July 1992  | 5 years  | 1987 | Shankar Dayal Sharma
9  |  | Shankar Dayal Sharma
(1918–1999) | Madhya Pradesh | Vice President of India

Governor of Maharashtra

| 25 July 1992  | 25 July 1997  | 5 years  | 1992 | K. R. Narayanan
10  |  | K. R. Narayanan
(1920–2005) | Kerala | Vice President of India | 25 July 1997  | 25 July 2002  | 5 years  | 1997 | Krishan Kant
11  |  | A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
(1931–2015) | Tamil Nadu | Chief Scientific Adviser to the Prime Minister | 25 July 2002  | 25 July 2007  | 5 years  | 2002 | Krishan Kant

* * *

Bhairon Singh Shekhawat

| Independent |
12  |  | Pratibha Devisingh Patil
(1934–) | Maharashtra | Governor of Rajasthan | 25 July 2007  | 25 July 2012  | 5 years  | 2007 | M. Hamid Ansari | Indian National Congress |
13  |  | Pranab Mukherjee
(1935–2020) | West Bengal | Minister of Defence

Minister of Finance

Minister of External Affairs

| 25 July 2012  | 25 July 2017  | 5 years  | 2012
14  |  | Ram Nath Kovind
(1945–) | Uttar Pradesh | Governor of Bihar | 25 July 2017  | 25 July 2022  | 5 years  | 2017 | M. Hamid Ansari

* * *

M. Venkaiah Naidu

| Bharatiya Janata Party |
15  |  | Droupadi Murmu
(1958–) | Odisha | Governor of Jharkhand | 25 July 2022  | Incumbent | 1 year, 220 days  | 2022 | M. Venkaiah Naidu

* * *

Jagdeep Dhankhar

## Statistics[edit]

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

Unable to compile EasyTimeline input:

EasyTimeline 1.90

Timeline generation failed: 2 errors found
Line 40: from: 25/07/2017 till: 25/07/2021color:BJP text:"Kovind" fontsize:10

\- PlotData attribute 'till' invalid.

Date '25/07/2021color' does not conform to specified DateFormat dd/mm/yyyy.

Line 41: from: 26/07/2021till:end color:BJP text:"Murmu" fontsize:10

\- PlotData attribute 'from' invalid.

Date '26/07/2021till' does not conform to specified DateFormat dd/mm/yyyy.

## See also[edit]

* 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[edit]

1. ^ "President Ram Nath Kovind is Indias first citizen. Your chances begin only at Number 27". indiatoday.com. Times of India. Archived from the original on 30 July 2017. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
2. ^ a b "The Constitution of India". Ministry of Law and Justice of India. Archived from the original (.doc) on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
3. ^ "India gets first woman president since independence". BBC News. 25 July 2007. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
4. ^ "1950: India becomes a republic". BBC News. 26 January 1950. Archived from the original on 17 January 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2009.
5. ^ Harish Khare (6 December 2006). "Selecting the next Rashtrapati". The Hindu. India. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
6. ^ Shekhar Iyer (25 June 2007). "Shekhawat will not resign to contest poll". Hindustan Times. India. Archived from the original 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". The Times of India. 25 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.

## References[edit]

* The President of India (official site)
* India portal (official site)

## External links[edit]

* World Statesmen – India
* Rulers.org – India

* v
* t
* e

Presidents of India

* List

Presidents|

* Rajendra Prasad
* Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
* Zakir Hussain
* Varahagiri Venkata Giri
* Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed
* Neelam Sanjiva Reddy
* Giani Zail Singh
* R. Venkataraman
* Shanker Dayal Sharma
* K. R. Narayanan
* A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
* Pratibha Devisingh Patil
* Pranab Mukherjee
* Ram Nath Kovind
* Droupadi Murmu

Acting|

* Varahagiri Venkata Giri
* M. Hidayatullah
* B. D. Jatti

* Category

* v
* t
* e

Government ministries of India

President (List) • Vice President (List) • Government of India • Prime Minister (List • Office) • Deputy Prime Minister • Council of Ministers

Current|

| Key|

* Defence
* External Affairs
* Finance
* Home Affairs

|

Economy & Industry|

* Chemicals and Fertilizers
* Civil Aviation
* Commerce and Industry
* Communications
* Co-operation
* Corporate Affairs
* Electronics and Information Technology
* Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
* Information and Broadcasting
* Labour and Employment
* Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
* Mines
* Steel
* Textiles
* Tourism

Infrastructure|

* Development of North Eastern Region
* Jal Shakti
* Ports, Shipping and Waterways
* Railways
* Road Transport and Highways
* Rural Development
* Housing and Urban Affairs

Food|

* Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare
* Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
* Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
* Food Processing Industries

Energy & Climate Change|

* Coal
* Environment, Forest and Climate Change
* New and Renewable Energy
* Petroleum and Natural Gas
* Power

Science, Education & Health|

* AYUSH
* Earth Sciences
* Education
* Health and Family Welfare
* Science and Technology
* Skill Development and Entrepreneurship

General Administration|

* Culture
* Law and Justice
* Minority Affairs
* Panchayati Raj
* Parliamentary Affairs
* Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
* Planning
* Social Justice and Empowerment
* Statistics and Programme Implementation
* Tribal Affairs
* Women and Child Development
* Youth Affairs and Sports

Defunct|

* Communications and Information Technology
* Information Technology
* Overseas Indian Affairs
* Surface Transport
* Drinking Water and Sanitation
* Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
* Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation

Ministers|

* Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare
* Communications
* Defence
* Education
* External Affairs
* Finance
* Home Affairs
* Housing and Urban Affairs
* Law and Justice
* Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
* Petroleum and Natural Gas
* Railways
* Road Transport and Highways
* Steel

Secretaries|

* Principal Secretary to PM
* Cabinet
* Defence
* Finance
* Foreign
* Home
* Personnel

Departments|

* Atomic Energy
* Biotechnology
* Higher Education
* Official Language
* Science and Technology (DST)
* Military Affairs
* Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade
* Space
* Telecommunication

* v
* t
* e

Government of India

Constitution|

* Constitution
* Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and Fundamental Duties
* Federalism
* Union List
* State List
* Concurrent List

Executive|

* President (list)
* Vice President (list)
* Union government
* Union Council of Ministers
* Prime Minister (list)
* Deputy Prime Minister
* Civil services
* All India Services
* Central Civil Services
* Cabinet Secretary
* Secretaries
* Defence
* Finance
* Foreign
* Home)
* Attorney General
* Solicitor General
* State governments
* Governors (list)
* Lieutenant governors and administrators
* Chief ministers (list)
* Deputy chief ministers
* Chief secretaries
* Principal secretaries
* Advocate generals

Legislature|

* Parliament
* Lok Sabha
* Speaker
* Deputy speaker
* Secretary General
* Member
* Leader
* Leader of the Opposition
* Rajya Sabha
* Chairman
* Deputy Chairperson
* Member
* Leader
* Leader of the Opposition
* State legislature
* State legislative assemblies
* State legislative councils
* Speakers and Chairpersons
* Members
* Leaders of the Opposition

Judiciary|

* Supreme Court of India
* Chief Justice of India (list)
* Sitting judges
* High courts
* Chief justices
* Sitting judges
* District courts

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template