List of presidents of India - Wikipedia List of presidents of India The Main Gate of Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India The President of India is the head of state and first citizen of India. The President is also the Commander - in - chief of the Indian Armed Forces. 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 Prime Minister. The post of President is known in Hindi as Rashtrapati, a Sanskrit neologism meaning `` lord of the realm ''. 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 Vidhan Sabha, the state legislative assemblies. There have been 14 presidents of India since the introduction of the post in 1950 ( the current tenure is 5 years of an Indian President 's term ). The post was established when India was declared as a republic with the adoption of the Indian constitution. Apart from these thirteen, three acting presidents have also been in office for short periods of time. Varahagiri Venkata Giri became Indian Acting President in 1969 following the death of Zakir Husain, 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. Giri was the only person to be elected as an independent candidate. 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. Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India, is the only person to have held office for two terms. Presidents by state of birth 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, he was born in Anantapur District ( now Andhra Pradesh ). Two presidents, Zakir Husain and Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, have died in office. Their vice-presidents functioned as acting president until a new president was elected. Following Zakir Husain 's death, two acting presidents held office until the new president, V.V. Giri, was elected. Varahagiri Venkata Giri himself, Zakir Husain 's vice president, was the first acting president. When Giri resigned to take part in the presidential elections, he was succeeded by Mohammad Hidayatullah as acting president. The 12th president, Pratibha Patil, is the first woman to serve as President of India, elected in 2007. The current President is Ram Nath Kovind, elected on 25 July 2017. Contents 1 Presidents 2 See also 3 References 3.1 General 3.2 Specific 4 External links Presidents This list is numbered based on Presidents elected after winning an Indian Presidential election. The terms of Varahagiri Venkata Giri, Mohammad 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 : Colour key President of India Acting President of India ( * ) No Name ( Birth -- Death ) Portrait Elected Took office Left office Vice President Rajendra Prasad ( 1884 -- 1963 ) 1952 1957 26 January 1950 12 May 1962 Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Prasad, from Bihar, was the first President of independent India, and also the longest - serving President, for 12 years. He was also a freedom fighter during the Indian independence movement. Prasad was the only president to serve two terms in office. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan ( 1888 -- 1975 ) 1962 13 May 1962 13 May 1967 Zakir Husain Radhakrishnan was a prominent philosopher and writer and also held the position of vice chancellor of the Andhra University and Banaras Hindu University. He was also made a Knight of the Golden Army of Angels by Pope Paul VI. He received Bharat Ratna award in 1954 before becoming the President. He was the first President from South India. Zakir Husain ( 1897 -- 1969 ) 1967 13 May 1967 3 May 1969 Varahagiri Venkata Giri Husain was vice chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University and a recipient of Padma Vibhushan and Bharat Ratna. He died in office, the first to do so. He was also the shortest - serving President. He was also the first Muslim President. -- Varahagiri Venkata Giri * ( 1894 -- 1980 ) -- 3 May 1969 20 July 1969 -- He was elected Vice President of India in 1967. Following the death of President Zakir Husain, Giri was appointed as Acting President. He resigned in a few months to take part in the presidential elections. -- Mohammad Hidayatullah * ( 1905 -- 1992 ) -- 20 July 1969 24 August 1969 -- Hidayatullah served as the Chief Justice of India, and was also a recipient of the Order of the British Empire. He served as Acting President until the election of Giri as the President of India. Varahagiri Venkata Giri ( 1894 -- 1980 ) 1969 24 August 1969 24 August 1974 Gopal Swarup Pathak Giri was the first person to have served as both an acting president and president of India. He was a recipient of the Bharat Ratna, and has functioned as Indian Minister of Labour and High Commissioner to Ceylon ( Sri Lanka ). Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed ( 1905 -- 1977 ) 24 August 1974 11 February 1977 Gopal Swarup Pathak ( 1974 ) Basappa Danappa Jatti ( 1974 -- 1977 ) Ahmed served as a Minister before being elected as president. He died in 1977 before historical term of office ended, and was the second Indian president to die in office. He was also president during Emergency. -- Basappa Danappa Jatti * ( 1912 -- 2002 ) -- 11 February 1977 25 July 1977 -- Jatti was the vice president of India during Ahmed 's term of office, and was sworn in as Acting President upon Ahmed 's death. He earlier functioned as the Chief Minister for the State of Mysore. 6 Neelam Sanjiva Reddy ( 1913 -- 1996 ) 1977 25 July 1977 25 July 1982 Basappa Danappa Jatti ( 1977 -- 1979 ) Muhammad Hidayatullah ( 1979 -- 1982 ) 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. 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. 7 Giani Zail Singh ( 1916 -- 1994 ) 1982 25 July 1982 25 July 1987 Muhammad Hidayatullah ( 1982 -- 1984 ) Ramaswamy Venkataraman ( 1984 -- 1987 ) In March 1972, Singh assumed the position of Chief Minister of Punjab, and in 1980, he became Union Home Minister. He was also secretary general to Non-Aligned Movement ( NAM ) from 1983 to 1986 8 Ramaswamy Venkataraman ( 1910 -- 2009 ) 25 July 1987 25 July 1992 Shankar Dayal Sharma In 1942, Venkataraman was jailed by the British for his involvement in the Indian independence movement. After his release, he was elected to independent India 's 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. 9 Shankar Dayal Sharma ( 1918 -- 1999 ) 25 July 1992 25 July 1997 Kocheril Raman Narayanan Sharma was Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, and the Indian Minister for Communications. He has also served as the governor of Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Maharashtra. 10 Kocheril Raman Narayanan ( 1920 -- 2005 ) 25 July 1997 25 July 2002 Krishan Kant Narayanan served as India 's ambassador to Thailand, Turkey, China and United States of America. He received doctorates in Science and Law and was also a chancellor in several universities. He was also the vice-chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University. He was the first President from Kerala, and also the first Dalit President. 11 A.P.J. Abdul Kalam ( 1931 -- 2015 ) 2002 25 July 2002 25 July 2007 Krishan Kant ( 2002 ) Bhairon Singh Shekhawat ( 2002 -- 2007 ) Kalam was a scientist who played a leading role in the development of India 's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs. He also received the Bharat Ratna. Kalam was affectionately known as the People 's President, due to his extra-Presidential activities. He was the first bachelor president of India, and the first Muslim President who completed his term. Kalam died following a heart attack while delivering a speech in Shillong. 12 Pratibha Patil ( 1934 -- ) 2007 25 July 2007 25 July 2012 Mohammad Hamid Ansari Patil was the first woman to become the President of India. She was also the first female Governor of Rajasthan. 13 Pranab Mukherjee ( 1935 -- ) 2012 25 July 2012 25 July 2017 Mohammad Hamid Ansari 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. 14 Ram Nath Kovind ( 1945 -- ) 2017 25 July 2017 Incumbent Mohammad Hamid Ansari ( 2017 ) Venkaiah Naidu Kovind was Governor of Bihar from 2015 until 2017 and a Member of Parliament from 1994 until 2006. He is the second Dalit president after K.R. Narayanan. He originally belongs to BJP and is an active member of RSS since his youth. See also President of India Vice President of India List of Vice-Presidents of India List of Prime Ministers of India References General `` Former Presidents ''. President 's Secretariat. Retrieved 29 November 2008. `` List of Presidents / Vice Presidents ''. Election Commission of India. Retrieved 29 November 2008. Specific ^ Jump up to : `` The Constitution of India '' (. doc ). Ministry of Law and Justice of India. Retrieved 4 January 2009. Jump up ^ `` India gets first woman president since independence ''. BBC News. 25 July 2007. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` 1950 : India becomes a republic ''. BBC News. 26 January 1950. Retrieved 6 January 2009. Jump up ^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/bjp-vs-opposition-india-set-to-witness-tightest-presidential-poll-since-1969/story-sZ5LlpWvMBaxPULLoQHZbN.html ^ Jump up to : Harish Khare ( 6 December 2006 ). `` Selecting the next Rashtrapati ''. The Hindu. India. Retrieved 30 November 2008. ^ Jump up to : Shekhar Iyer ( 25 June 2007 ). `` Shekhawat will not resign to contest poll ''. Hindustan Times. India. Retrieved 4 January 2009. Jump up ^ `` First female president for India ''. BBC News. 21 July 2007. Retrieved 4 December 2008. Jump up ^ `` Rajendra Prasad ''. The Hindu. India. 7 May 1952. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Republic Day ''. Time. 6 February 1950. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Rajendra Prasad 's birth anniversary celebrated ''. The Hindu. India. 10 December 2006. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ Ramachandra Guha ( 15 April 2006 ). `` Why Amartya Sen should become the next president of India ''. The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Dr S. Radhakrishnan ''. The Sunday Tribune. 30 January 2000. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Zakir Husain, ''. Vice President 's Secretariat. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Shekhawat need not compare himself to Giri : Shashi Bhushan ''. The Hindu. India. 12 July 2007. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Hidayatullah, Shri M ''. Vice President 's Secretariat. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Giri, Shri Varahagiri Venkata ''. Vice President 's Secretariat. Retrieved 30 November 2008. ^ Jump up to : `` Gallery of Indian Presidents ''. Press Information Bureau of the Government of India. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ `` Emergency : The Dark Age of Indian democracy ''. The Hindu. Retrieved 25 July 2017. Jump up ^ `` Jatti, Shri Basappa Danappa ''. Vice President 's Secretariat. Retrieved 30 November 2008. Jump up ^ Bhargava, G.S. `` Making of the Prez -- Congress chief selects PM as well as President ''. The Tribune. India. Retrieved 6 January 2009. Jump up ^ Wolpert, Stanley A. ( 1999 ). India. University of California Press. p. 217. Retrieved 3 January 2009. Jump up ^ Hazarika, Sanjoy ( 17 July 1987 ). `` Man in the News ; India 's Mild New President : Ramaswamy Venkataraman ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 6 January 2009. Jump up ^ `` Venkataraman, Shri R. ''. Vice President 's Secretariat. Retrieved 6 January 2009. Jump up ^ Navtej Sarna ( 27 December 1999 ). `` Former President Shankar Dayal Sharma passes away ''. Embassy of India, Washington D.C. Retrieved 6 December 2008. Jump up ^ `` Narayanan, Shri K, R ''. Vice President 's Secretariat. Archived from the original on 10 February 2009. Retrieved 6 December 2008. Jump up ^ `` The BJP 's aim was to get rid of me ''. Confederation of Human Rights Organizations. Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2009. Jump up ^ Ramana, M.V. ; Reddy, C. Rammanohar ( 2002 ). Prisoners of the Nuclear Dream. New Delhi : Orient Longman. p. 169. Jump up ^ Tyagi, Kavita ; Misra, Padma. Basic Technical Communication. PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd. p. 124. ISBN 978 - 81 - 203 - 4238 - 5. Retrieved 2 May 2012. Jump up ^ `` ' Kalam was real people 's President ' ''. Hindustan Times. Indo - Asian News Service. 24 July 2007. Retrieved 2 May 2012. Jump up ^ Perappadan, Bindu Shajan ( 14 April 2007 ). `` The people 's President does it again ''. The Hindu. Chennai, India. Retrieved 2 May 2012. Jump up ^ Emily Wax ( 22 July 2007 ). `` Female President Elected in India ''. The Washington Post. Retrieved 2 December 2008. Jump up ^ `` Pratibha Patil is Rajasthan 's first woman governor ''. Express India. 8 November 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2008. Jump up ^ http://zeenews.india.com/news/exclusive/pranab-mukherjee - -- - the - 13th - president - of - india_789045. html External links Official website of the President of India Rediff.com -- Presidents of India The Hindu -- A presidential poll in the coalition age Zee News : Former Presidents Presidents of India ( List ) Rajendra Prasad Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Zakir Hussain V.V. Giri ( acting ) Mohammad Hidayatullah ( acting ) V.V. Giri Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed B.D. Jatti ( acting ) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy Zail Singh R. Venkataraman Shankar Dayal Sharma K.R. Narayanan A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Pratibha Patil Pranab Mukherjee Ram Nath Kovind Lists of Presidents and Vice Presidents of India Presidential lists by order Order of service Age Birth Death Number Living Time in office Presidents ' personal lives College education Place of birth Place of primary affiliation Previous occupation Religious affiliation Presidents ' professional lives Political affiliation Previous experience Inaugurations ( Addresses ) Pardons Vacancies Vice Presidential lists Order of service Time in office Birth Longevity Vacancies Succession Line of succession Government ministries of India President ( List ) Government of India Prime Minister ( List Office ) Deputy Prime Minister Council of Ministers Current Agriculture and Farmers Welfare AYUSH Chemicals and Fertilizers Civil Aviation Coal Commerce and Industry Communications Consumer Affairs Culture Defence Drinking Water and Sanitation Earth Sciences Electronics and Information Technology Environment, Forest and Climate Change External Affiars Finance Food Processing Industries Health and Family Welfare Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Home Affairs Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Human Resource Development Information and Broadcasting Labour and Employment Law and Justice Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Mines Minority Affairs New and Renewable Energy North East Panchayati Raj Parliamentary Affairs Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Petroleum Power Railways Road Transport and Highways Rural Development Science and Technology Shipping Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Social Justice and Empowerment Statistics and Programme Implementation Steel Textiles Tourism Tribal Affairs Urban Development Water Resources Women and Child Development Defunct Communications and Information Technology Overseas Indian Affairs Surface Transport Ministers Home Affairs Finance External Affairs Defence Railways Health and Family Welfare HRD Information and Broadcasting Labour and Employment Parliamentary Affairs Science and Technology Tribal Affairs North Eastern Region Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Presidents_of_India&oldid=804950835 '' Categories : Lists of presidents Lists relating to the Indian presidency Lists of political office - holders in India Hidden categories : Use Indian English from December 2012 All Wikipedia articles written in Indian English Use dmy dates from January 2013 Talk Contents About Wikipedia অসমীয়া বাংলা Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español فارسی Français ગુજરાતી हिन्दी Ido Bahasa Indonesia Italiano ಕನ್ನಡ Lëtzebuergesch मैथिली മലയാളം Bahasa Melayu Nederlands Norsk Occitan ଓଡ଼ିଆ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ Português संस्कृतम् Suomi தமிழ் తెలుగు Türkçe اردو 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 12 October 2017, at 03 : 07. 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Question: who served the longest term as president in india
Answer: Rajendra Prasad