According to article 52 of the Indian constitution, “There shall be a President of India”. The President of India is the head of state of the Republic of India. The President is the formal head of the executive, legislature and judiciary of India and is also the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Until now India has been under the tutelage of 14 presidents, with Ram Nath Kovind being the current president of the nation.
1. Dr Rajendra Prasad (In office: Jan 26, 1950- May 13, 1962)
He was the first president of India after the adoption of the constitution in 1950 and was one of the first to receive the Bharat Ratna, in 1954. He was also the first to lead the line of five Presidents to receive the Bharat Ratna till now.
2 . Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (In Office- May 13, 1962- May 13, 1967)
Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was born on 5 September 1888, and this day is celebrated as Teacher’s Day. He was awarded Bharat Ratna in 1954. He was knighted in 1931 and since then till the attainment of Independence, he was addressed as Sir Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.
3 . Dr Zakir Husain (In office-May 13, 1967- May 3, 1969)
Dr Zakir Husain became the first Muslim President of India and died at his post. The immediate Vice President, V.V. Giri was made the acting President. He formerly served as the governor of Bihar from 1957 to 1962 and as the second vice president of India from 1962 to 1967.
4 .Varahagiri Venkata Giri (In office- May 3, 1969-Jul 20, 1969 (acting)
He was the only president to be elected as an independent candidate. In 1975, he was awarded Bharat Ratna. Giri is the only person to have served as both an acting president and president of India.
Giri was made the president of India on 24 August 1969 and served till 24 August 1974.
5 . Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (In office- August 24, 1974- Feb 11, 1977)
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed was a lawyer and a politician who served as the 5th president of India from 1974 to 1977. He was the second President of India to die in office. B. D. Jatti became the acting President on 11 February 1977 and served till 25 July 1977.
6 . Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy (In office- July 25, 1977-July25, 1982)
He held several key offices in independent India—as the first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, a two-time Speaker of the Lok Sabha and a Union Minister—before becoming the youngest-ever Indian president.
7 . Giani Zail Singh ( In Office- July 25 1982-July 25, 1987)
His presidency was marked by Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. He died of injuries in 1994, after a car accident. He was also the Chief Minister of Punjab and the Minister at the Centre. He also used Pocket Veto on the Indian Post Office Bill.
8 . Ramaswamy Venkataraman (In office- July 25, 1987- July 25, 1992)
He was the oldest president to become at 76 years He is a recipient of “Tamra Patra” for his contributions to India’s freedom struggle. Apart from this, the Russian government had conferred the Soviet Land Prize for writing the travelogue on former Tamil Nadu Prime Minister, Kumaraswami Kamaraj’s.
9 . Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma(In office- July 25, 1992-July 25, 1997)
Sharma was Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. The International Bar Association gave them the ‘Living Legend of Law Award of Recognition’ due to their multi-achievements in the legal profession.
10 . Kocheril Raman Narayanan (In office- July 25, 1997-July 25, 2002)
He was the first President from Kerala, and also the first Dalit President. He was the first President to vote in the Lok Sabha elections and addressed the state assembly. Narayanan is regarded as an independent and assertive President who set several precedents and enlarged the scope of India’s highest constitutional office.
11 . Dr A.P.J Abdul Kalam(In office- July 25, 2002-July 25, 2007)
Widely referred to as the “People’s President”, Kalam was among the most loved presidents of India. He was popularly known as the missile man of India. He was a recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour. In his directorial, Rohini-1 satellites, Agni and Prithvi missiles were successfully launched. The Pokhran-II nuclear tests conducted in India in 1998 after the original nuclear test of 1974 saw him in a pivotal political, organisational and technical role.
12 . Shrimati Pratibha Singh Patil (in office- July 25, 2007- July 25, 2012)
She is the first woman to become the President of India. She was the Governor of Rajasthan before becoming the President. From 1962 to 1985, she was a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly five times and was elected from Amravati to the Lok Sabha in 1991. She was also the first woman president to fly Sukhoi.
13 . Pranab Mukherjee (In office- July 25, 2012 -July 25, 2017)
Before he was elected President, Mukherjee was Union Finance Minister from 2009 to 2012. He was awarded India’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna. He died on 31 August 2020 (Monday) at the age of 84. He has served as the Foreign Minister, Defence Minister and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.
14 . Ram Nath Kovind ( In office- July 25, 2017- Incumbent)
He is the 14th president of India and is a member of the BJP. Before his presidency, he served as the 26th governor of Bihar from 2015 to 2017 and as a member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from 1994 to 2006