Query: A. P. J. Abdul Kalam was elected as a leader of India.

Relevant passages:
A. P. J. Abdul Kalam <=SEP=> Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam better known as A.P.J. Abdul Kalam -LSB- ˈæbdʊl_kəˈlɑːm -RSB- ( 15 October 1931 -- 27 July 2015 ) was the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007 . A career scientist turned statesman , Kalam was born and raised in Rameswaram , Tamil Nadu , and studied physics and aerospace engineering . He spent the next four decades as a scientist and science administrator , mainly at the Defence Research and Development Organisation ( DRDO ) and Indian Space Research Organisation ( ISRO ) and was intimately involved in India 's civilian space programme and military missile development efforts . He thus came to be known as the Missile Man of India for his work on the development of ballistic missile and launch vehicle technology . He also played a pivotal organisational , technical , and political role in India 's Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998 , the first since the original nuclear test by India in 1974 .   Kalam was elected as the 11th President of India in 2002 with the support of both the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the then-opposition Indian National Congress . Widely referred to as the `` People 's President , '' he returned to his civilian life of education , writing and public service after a single term . He was a recipient of several prestigious awards , including the Bharat Ratna , India 's highest civilian honour .   While delivering a lecture at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong , Kalam collapsed and died from an apparent cardiac arrest on 27 July 2015 , aged 83 . Thousands including national-level dignitaries attended the funeral ceremony held in his hometown of Rameshwaram , where he was buried with full state honours .

President of India <=SEP=> The President of the Republic of India is the Head of State of India and the Commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces .   The President is indirectly elected by the people through elected members of both the houses of the Parliament of India , the Legislative Assemblies of all the states of India and the Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory of Puducherry , as well as , the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi and serves for a renewable term of five years . The oath of the President is taken in the presence of the Chief Justice of India , and in his/her absence , by the most senior judge of the Supreme Court of India .   Although the Article 53 of the Constitution of India states that the President can exercise his powers directly or by subordinate authority , with few exceptions , all of the executive authority vested in the President are , in practice , exercised by the Prime Minister with the help of the Council of Ministers .   The President resides in an estate known as the Rashtrapati Bhavan ( which roughly translates as President 's House ) situated in Raisina Hill in New Delhi . The presidential retreats are The Retreat in Chharabra , Shimla and Rashtrapati Nilayam ( President 's Place ) in Hyderabad .   The 13th and current President is Pranab Mukherjee , who was elected on 22 July 2012 , and sworn in on 25 July 2012 . He is also the first Bengali to be elected as President .