The President of India 2022 – Check the List of President of India & Facts!

The President of India or Rashtrapati of India

The President is the head of the Republic of India and is the first citizen of India. Article 53 of the Indian Constitution states that all the executive powers of the Union shall be exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinates to him.

In the Constitution Part V (The Union) under Chapter I (The Executive) details of qualifications, election and impeachment of the President of India are given. That is Articles from 52 to 78 in Part V of the Constitution deals with the Union Executive. The President of India is also the head of the executive, legislature and judiciary of the country. 

The President holds office for a tenure of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office. However, he can resign from his office at any time by addressing the resignation letter to the Vice-President. Further, he can also be removed from the office before completion of his term by the process of impeachment. The President can hold office beyond his term of five years until his successor assumes charge. He is also eligible for re-election to that office.

The Electoral College elects the President of India, which includes the elected members of both the Houses of Parliament, the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the states and the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Delhi and Pondicherry and the representation of its members is preferential.

ELECTION PROCESS OF THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA

The President is elected not directly by the people but by the members of an electoral college. The electoral college consists of:

1. Elected members of both houses of the Parliament
2. Elected members of the state legislative assemblies
3. Elected members of the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Delhi and Puducherry

Note that only Elected members vote for the Presidential election and nominated members do not participate. 

However the number of elected members are different in each state legislative assembly. The number of elected members in the states as a whole is much more than the number of elected members of both houses of the parliament. If each of these elected members were to have one vote each, the election results would be lopsided.
The constitution provides a way to bring uniformity in the scale of representation of each state as well as parity between states as a whole and the Union. To achieve this, there are two different formulas to decide the weightage of the votes of MPs and MLAs.

Method of election:

The method followed is proportional representation by means of single transferable vote. To be declared as President, a candidate must secure a fixed quota of votes known as electoral quota.

Step 1: The voters cast their vote by marking their order of preference (1,2,3,4,etc.) against the names of all candidates.
Step 2: All the 1st preference votes are counted. The candidate who secures the electoral quota wins. If no one secures the quota then we move to step 3.
Step 3: The candidate with least number of first preference votes is eliminated. His second preference votes will now be transferred to the first preference votes of other candidates.
Step 2 and 3 are repeated till any one candidate secures the electoral quota and is elected as the President of India.
Let’s understand this in detail:

For example if A, B and C are the candidates and C secured the least first preference votes. C would be eliminated.
Sample vote of voter X whose first preference is C: C – 1st, B – 2nd, A – 3rd
Now since C is eliminated the votes of voter X would now be considered as: B – 1st, A – 2nd

Any disputes regarding the President’s elections are handled by the Supreme Court.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE PRESIDENT OF THE INDIA

A candidate has to meet some qualifications to be elected as the president. Those qualifications of the President are:

1. He should be an Indian Citizen
2. His age should be a minimum of 35 years
3. He should qualify the conditions to be elected as a member of the Lok Sabha
4. He should not hold any office of profit under the central government, state government, or any public authority

OATH

The president is required to make and subscribe in the presence of the Chief Justice of India—or in his absence, the senior-most judge of the supreme court—an oath or affirmation that he/she shall protect, preserve and defend the constitution as follows:

I, (name), do swear in the name of God (or solemnly affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President (or discharge the functions of the President) of the Republic of India, and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law, and that I will devote myself to the service and well-being of the people of the Republic of India.

— Article 60, Constitution of India

CONDITIONS

The following conditions have been laid down for the President’s office:

• He should not be a member of either House of Parliament or a House of the state legislature. If any such member is elected as President, he is considered to have vacated that seat on joining the office of the President.
• He should not hold any office of profit.
• He is entitled to stay at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, without paying rent.
• He gets emoluments and allowances and privileges as determined by the Parliament.
• These allowances and emoluments cannot be reduced during his tenure.

IMPEACHMENT OF THE INDIAN PRESIDENT (ARTICLE 61)

ARTICLE 61: Procedure for Impeachment of the President

The only condition for the initiation of impeachment of the Indian president is the ‘violation of the constitution.’ Although, the Indian Constitution does not contain any definition of ‘violation of the constitution.’

This feature of the Indian Constitution is borrowed from the constitution of the United States of America (USA). 

The Procedure:

(1) When a President is to be impeached for violation of the Constitution, the charge shall be preferred by either House of Parliament.

(2) No such charge shall be preferred unless –

(a) the proposal to prefer such charge is contained in a resolution which has been moved after at least fourteen days’ notice in writing signed by not less than one-fourth of the total number of members of the House has been given of their intention to move the resolution, and

(b) such resolution has been passed by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the total membership of the House.

(3) When a charge has been so preferred by either House of Parliament, the other House shall investigate the charge or cause the charge to be investigated and the President shall have the right to appear and to be represented at such investigation.

(4) If as a result of the investigation a resolution is passed by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the total membership of the House by which the charge was investigated or caused to be investigated, declaring that the charge preferred against the President has been sustained, such resolution shall have the effect of removing the President from his office as from the date on which the resolution is so passed.

(a) Any of the two houses initiate the impeachment charge

(b) The house passes the charges with 2/3rd majority and sends it to another house

(c) The other house investigates the charges

(d) The other house also agrees and passes the charges with 2/3rd  majority

(e) The president stands removed.

After the President is removed from the office the Vice-President discharges the duties as President;

As per the President’s Act 1969; if the Vice-President office is vacant too, Chief Justice of India (CJI) (or in his absence); Supreme Court’s senior-most judge, discharges the functions of the President (till new President is elected.)

VACANCY

CONDITIONS FOR VACANCY IN THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

The office of the President falls vacant under the following conditions:

1.      Expiry of his tenure of five years.

2.      By reason of his resignation.

3.      His removal by the process of impeachment.

4.      By reason of his death.

5.      Other reasons. E.g., when he becomes disqualified to hold office or when his election is declared void.

Article 65 of the Indian constitution says that the Vice-President of India will have to discharge the duties, if the office falls vacant due to any reason other than the expiry of the term. The Vice-President reverts to their office when a new president is elected and enters office. When the president is unable to act because of absence, illness or any other cause, the vice-president discharges the president’s functions until the president resumes the duties.

Process for filling the vacancy in President’s Office

1.  In case of expiry of his tenure of five years

• An election to fill the vacancy must be held before the expiration of the term i.e 5 years.
• In case of any delay in conducting the election for the new President by any reason, the outgoing President continues to hold office (beyond his term of five years) until his successor assumes charge.
• This is provided in the Constitution to prevent an interregnum i.e., void or gap or break.
• In this scenario, the Vice-President does not act as President.

2. In case of his resignation, removal, death or other reason

• If the office falls vacant due to resignation, removal, death or otherwise, then the election to fill the vacancy should be held within 6 months from the date of the occurrence of such vacancy.
• The newly elected President will remain in office for a full term of 5 years from the date he assumes charge.
• In this scenario, the Vice-President acts as the President until a new President is elected.
• Also, if the sitting President is unable to discharge his functions due to absence, illness etc. the Vice-President discharges his functions until the President resumes his office.
• In case the office of Vice-President is vacant, the Chief Justice of India acts as President.
• If his office too is vacant, the senior most judge of the Supreme Court (who is available) acts as the President or discharges the functions of the President.
• When any other person like the VP, CJI, or the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court acts as the President, they enjoy all the powers and immunities of the President and are entitled to such emoluments, allowances and privileges as are determined by the Parliament.

List of all Presidents of India

The Indian President is the head of the state. He is the first citizen of India and is a symbol of solidarity, unity, and integrity of the nation. He is a part of the Union Executive along with the Vice-President, Prime Minister, Council of Ministers, and Attorney-General of India. Let us look at the honorable citizens who have held this post:

Name	Tenure
Dr Rajendra Prasad	January 26, 1950 – May 13, 1962
Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan	May 13, 1962 – May 13, 1967
Dr Zakir Hussain	May 13, 1967 – May 03, 1969
Varahagiri Venkatagiri  (Acting)	May 03, 1969 – July 20, 1969
Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah (Acting)	July 20, 1969 – August 24, 1969
Varahagiri Venkatagiri	August 24, 1969 – August 24, 1974
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed	August 24, 1974 – February 11, 1977
B.D. Jatti (Acting)	February 11, 1977 – July 25, 1977
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy	July 25, 1977 – July 25, 1982
Giani Zail Singh	July 25, 1982 – July 25, 1987
R. Venkataraman	July 25, 1987 – July 25, 1992
Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma	July 25, 1992 – July 25, 1997
K.R. Narayanan	July 25, 1997 – July 25, 2002
Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam	July 25, 2002 – July 25, 2007
Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil	July 25, 2007 – July 25, 2012
Shri Pranab Mukherjee	July 25, 2012 – July 25, 2017
Shri Ram Nath Kovind	July 25, 2017 – Incumbent

Dr Rajendra Prasad FIRST PRESIDENT OF THE INDIA

He was an Indian independence activist, lawyer, scholar and subsequently, the first President of India, in office from 1950 to 1962. He was an Indian political leader and lawyer by training. He joined the Indian National Congress during the Indian Independence Movement

In 1946, Rajendra Prasad joined the Interim Government of India as the Minister of Food and Agriculture. He was a firm believer in the maximization of agricultural production. He crafted the slogan “Grow More Food.” Two and a half years after independence, on 26 January 1950, the Constitution of independent India was approved and Prasad was elected the nation’s first president. Unfortunately, on the night of 25 January 1950, a day before the Republic Day of India, his sister Bhagwati Devi died. He arranged her cremation but only after his return from the parade ground.

As President of India, he duly acted as required by the Constitution, independent of any political party. He travelled the world extensively as an ambassador of India, building diplomatic rapport with foreign nations. He was re-elected for two consecutive terms in 1952 and 1957. He is the only President of India to achieve this feat. The Mughal Gardens at the Rashtrapati Bhavan were open to public for about a month for the first time during his tenure. It has been a big attraction for people in Delhi and other parts of the country since then. While holding the presidency he travelled to many countries. He insisted that many countries maintain peace.

He acted independently of politics, following the expected role of the president as required by the constitution. Following the tussle over the enactment of the Hindu Code Bill, he took a more active role in state affairs. In 1962, after serving twelve years as the president, he announced his decision to retire. After relinquishing the office of the President of India on May 1962, he returned to Patna on 14 May 1962 and preferred to stay in the campus of Bihar Vidyapeeth. He was subsequently awarded the Bharat Ratna, the nation’s highest civilian award. He died on 28 February 1963, aged 78. Rajendra Smriti Sangrahalaya in Patna is dedicated to him.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan 

He is an Indian academic, professor, philosopher, and politician who served as the first Vice President of India (1952–1962) and the second President of India. He is the only President of India who could not attend the Delhi Republic Day parade due to his ill health. Radhakrishnan was awarded several high awards during his life, including a knighthood in 1931, the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in India, in 1954, and honorary membership of the British Royal Order of Merit in 1963. He was also one of the founders of Helpage India, a non-profit organisation for elderly underprivileged in India. Radhakrishnan believed that “teachers should be the best minds in the country”. Since 1962, his birthday has been celebrated in India as Teachers’ Day on 5 September every year

Radhakrishnan did not have a background in the Congress Party, nor was he active in the struggle against British rules. He was the politician in shadow.His motivation lay in his pride of Hindu culture, and the defence of Hinduism against “uninformed Western criticism”.According to the historian Donald Mackenzie Brown,

He had always defended Hindu culture against uninformed Western criticism and had symbolized the pride of Indians in their own intellectual traditions. He was against State institutions imparting denominational religious instruction as it was against the secular vision of the Indian State. When Radhakrishnan became the President of India, some of his students and friends requested him to allow them to celebrate his birthday, on 5 September. He replied, Instead of celebrating my birthday, it would be my proud privilege if September 5th is observed as Teachers’ Day. His birthday has since been celebrated as Teacher’s Day in India. Along with Ghanshyam Das Birla and some other social workers in the pre-independence era, Radhakrishnan formed the Krishnarpan Charity Trust.

Zakir Husain Khan

He  was an Indian economist and politician who served as the third President of India, from 13 May 1967 until his death on 3 May 1969. He previously served as Governor of Bihar from 1957 to 1962 and as Vice President of India from 1962 to 1967. He was also the co-founder of Jamia Millia Islamia, serving as its Vice-chancellor from 1928. Under Husain, Jamia became closely associated with the Indian freedom movement. He was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour, in 1963. He was the first Muslim president of India and the first Indian president to die in office. 

Varahagiri Venkata Giri 

He was the fourth president of India from 24 August 1969 to 24 August 1974. He was the only president to be elected as an independent candidate. After the end of his full term, Giri was honoured by the Government of India with the Bharat Ratna in 1975.On his election, Giri became the only president to have also been an acting president and the only person to be elected president as an independent candidate.As president, Giri unquestioningly accepted Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s decision to sack the Charan Singh ministry in Uttar Pradesh and advised her to go in for early elections in 1971. The ordinance abolishing privy purses and privileges of the erstwhile rulers of India’s princely states was promulgated by Giri after the government’s original amendment was defeated in the Rajya Sabha. His advice to Prime Minister Gandhi against the appointment of A.N. Ray as the Chief Justice of India superseding three judges senior to him was ignored by her as was his warning that a crackdown on striking railwaymen would only exacerbate the situation.As president, Giri made 14 state visits to 22 countries in South and SouthEast Asia, Europe and Africa.

Giri is regarded as a president who completely subordinated himself to the prime minister and has been described as a “Prime Minister’s President”,a loyalist president and a rubber stamp president under whom the independence of the office eroded. In 1957, he headed a team of prominent public personalities and academicians to establish The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE) . He was honoured with India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna, in 1975 for his contributions in the area of public affairs. As president, Giri had suo motu conferred the Bharat Ratna on Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1971. Giri was arrested for the first time in 1992 for demonstrating against the sale of liquor. VV Giri also served as Governor of Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Mysore. Giri has written two important books, one on “Industrial Relations” and the other on “Labour Problems in Indian Industry”.

Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed  

He was an Indian lawyer and politician who served as the fifth President of India from 1974 to 1977. He was also the second President of India to die in office Ahmed was chosen for the presidency by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1974, and on 20 August 1974, he became the second Muslim to be elected President of India. He is known to have issued the proclamation of emergency by signing the papers at midnight after a meeting with Indira Gandhi the same day.He used his constitutional authority as head of state to allow him to rule by decree once the Emergency in India was proclaimed in 1975.He is well known among Indian diplomats for his visit to Sudan in 1975. Ahmed was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Pristina, in Kosovo, in 1975. In his honour, a medical college Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College has been named at Barpeta, Assam.

Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 

He  was the Sixth President of India, serving from 1977 to 1982. Beginning a long political career with the Indian National Congress Party in the independence movement, he went on to hold 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. Reddy worked with three governments, with Prime Ministers Morarji Desai, Charan Singh and Indira Gandhi.Between 1980 and 1982 President Reddy led seven state visits abroad, visiting the USSR, Bulgaria, Kenya, Zambia, the UK, Ireland, Indonesia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Yugoslavia. At home, as president, he signed an ordinance that gave the new government wide powers to imprison people for up to a year without trial under preventive detention and ordered the imposition of President’s rule in nine opposition-ruled states on the advice of the government

One of the incredible feats that Reddy achieved was that he renounced residency at the Rashtrapati Bhavan and took a 70 percent cut in his salary as a gesture toward the poor economic conditions of the masses in 1977.

Giani Zail Singh 

He was the seventh President of India serving from 1982 to 1987. Prior to his presidency, he was a politician with the Indian National Congress party, and had held several ministerial posts in the Union Cabinet, including that of Home Minister. He also served as the Chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement from 1983 to 1986. His presidency was marked by Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the 1984 anti-Sikh riots . The only Sikh President of India till now, Singh also served as the Chief Minister of Punjab. He came under the scanner during Operation Blue Star, when then prime minister Indira Gandhi ordered the security forces to combat Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and his armed followers in the Golden Temple, Amritsar.

Since the order to the armed forces had to come directly from the President, questions were raised as to how Gandhi managed to order the army to carry out the mission. Also, in 1986 he exercised the Pocket veto with respect to the Indian Post Office (Amendment) Bill, passed by Rajiv Gandhi, imposing restrictions on the freedom of press and hence, was widely criticised. Zail Singh was awarded the Order of St. Thomas^[(the highest honorary award conferred by the Indian Orthodox Church) by Catholicos of the East Baselios MarThoma Mathews I during the Catholicate Platinum jubilee celebratory meeting held at Kottayam Nehru Stadium on 12 September 1982.

Ramaswamy Venkataraman 

He was an Indian lawyer, Indian independence activist and politician who served as a Union Minister and as the eighth President of India. he was an activist of the Indian independence movement and participated in the Quit India Movement. He was appointed as a member of the Constituent Assembly and the provisional cabinet. He was elected to the Lok Sabha four times and served as Union Finance Minister and Defence Minister. He was appointed as the Minister of Defence on June 22, 1982 and he served the post until August 2, 1984. During this time, he initiated India’s first missile programme, named Integrated Guided Missile Development Program, and appointed Dr A. P. J. Abdul Kalam as the programme head. In 1984, he was elected as the seventh Vice President of India and in 1987; he became the 8th President of India and served from 1987 to 1992. He was awarded The Tamra Patra for participation in the freedom struggle, the Soviet Land Prize for his travelogue on K. Kamaraj’s visit to the Socialist countries. Before being elected as the President, Venkataraman served a stint as the Governor of the International Monetary Fund, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the Asian Development Bank.

Venkataraman was a man with a huge legacy. He actively took part in the freedom struggle (suffering two-year detention in prison for his activism in the Quit India Movement of 1942). He defended Indian nationals charged with collaborating with the Japanese during World War II in Malaya and Singapore in 1945. He was also among the delegates of India at the United Nations General Assembly and was also elected the President for life of the United Nations Tribunal.

Shankar Dayal Sharma 

He was the ninth President of India, serving from 1992 to 1997. Prior to his presidency, Sharma had been the eighth Vice President of India, serving under R. Venkataraman. He was also the Chief Minister (1952–1956) of Bhopal State, and Cabinet Minister (1956–1967), holding the portfolios of Education, Law, Public Works, Industry and Commerce, National Resources and Separate Revenue. He was the President of the Indian National Congress in 1972–1974 and returned to the Government as Union Minister for Communications from 1974 to 1977. The International Bar Association presented Sharma with the ‘Living Legends of Law Award of Recognition for his outstanding contribution to the legal profession internationally and for commitment to the rule of law. As a member of the Congress, he accompanied the movement against the Nawab of Bengal, who expressed desire to retain the princely state. Sharma was arrested in 1948 for leading a public agitation against the Nawab. During his tenure, Sharma rejected the mercy petitions in all 14 cases placed before him.

Kocheril Raman Narayanan – First Dalit President of India

He was an Indian diplomat, academician and politician who served as the 10th President of India (1997–2002) and 9th Vice President of India (1992–1997). Narayanan is regarded as an independent and assertive President who set several precedents and enlarged the scope of India’s highest constitutional office. He described himself as a “working President” who worked “within the four corners of the Constitution”; something midway between an “executive President” who has direct power and a “rubber-stamp President” who endorses government decisions without question or deliberation.He used his discretionary powers as a President and deviated from convention and precedent in many situations, including – but not limited to – the appointment of the Prime Minister in a hung Parliament, in dismissing a state government and imposing President’s rule there at the suggestion of the Union Cabinet, and during the Kargil conflict. He presided over the golden jubilee celebrations of Indian independence and in the country’s general election of 1998, he became the first Indian President to vote when in office, setting another new precedent.

President K. R. Narayanan’s address to the nation on the golden jubilee of the Indian Republic (26 January 2000) is considered a landmark: it was the first time a President attempted to analyse, with due concern for growing disparities, the several ways in which the country had failed to provide economic justice to the Indian people, particularly the rural and agrarian population; he also stated that discontent was breeding and frustrations erupting in violence among the deprived sections of society. During his Presidency, Narayanan dissolved the Lok Sabha twice after determining through consultations across the political spectrum, that no one was in a position to secure the confidence of the house. President Narayanan returned for reconsideration the advices from the Union cabinet to impose President’s rule in a state, in accordance with Article 356, in two instances: one from the Gujral government (22 October 1997) seeking to dismiss the Kalyan Singh government in Uttar Pradesh,and the other from the Vajpayee government (25 September 1998) seeking to dismiss the Rabri Devi government in Bihar.

A military conflict was developed in Kargil on the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan in May 1999. The Vajpayee government had lost a no-confidence vote in Lok Sabha earlier that year and the opposition failed to form the next government. The Lok Sabha had been dissolved and a caretaker government was in office. This caused a problem with democratic accountability, as every major government decision is expected to be discussed, deliberated and consented by the parliament. Narayanan suggested to Vajpayee that the Rajya Sabha be convened to discuss the conflict, as demanded by several opposition parties (citing the precedent of Nehru convening a parliamentary session on Vajpayee’s demand during the Sino-Indian war in 1962 ) though there was no precedent of convening the Rajya Sabha in isolation during an interregnum. Further, Narayanan was briefed by the chiefs of the three arms of the Indian Armed Forces on the conduct of the conflict. His Republic day address next year began by paying homage to the soldiers who had died defending the nation.He in his speeches consistently sought to remind the nation of its duties and obligations towards the Dalits and Adivasis, the minorities, and the poor and downtrodden. He called the nation’s attention to various recalcitrant social ills and evils, such as atrocities against women and children, caste discrimination and the ingrained attitudes it nurtured, abuse of the environment and public utilities, corruption and lack of accountability in the delivery of public services, religious fundamentalism, advertisement-driven consumerism, and flouting of human rights, and lamented the absence of public concern, political debate, and civic action to address them. Drawing from the experiences of his own home state Kerala, he pointed out that education was at the root of human and economic development. He hoped that the establishment would not fear the awakening of the masses through education, and spoke of the need to have faith in the people. 

He  spoke on various occasions on the condition of the Dalits, Adivasis, and other oppressed sections of society, and the various iniquities they faced (often in defiance of law), such as denial of civic amenities, ostracism, harassment and violence (particularly against women), and displacement by ill-conceived development projects.

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam 

He was an Indian aerospace scientist who served as the 11th President of India from 2002 to 2007. He spent 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 the third President of India to have been honoured with a Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour, before becoming the President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1954) and Zakir Hussain (1963) were the earlier recipients of Bharat Ratna who later became the President of India.He was also the first scientist and the first bachelor to occupy Rashtrapati Bhawan

During his term as president, he was affectionately known as the People’s President, saying that signing the Office of Profit Bill was the toughest decision he had taken during his tenure. Kalam was criticised for his inaction in deciding the fate of 20 out of the 21 mercy petitions submitted to him during his tenure.Article 72 of the Constitution of India empowers the President of India to grant pardons, and suspend or commute the death sentence of convicts on death row.Kalam acted on only one mercy plea in his five-year tenure as president, rejecting the plea of rapist Dhananjoy Chatterjee, who was later hanged. Perhaps the most notable plea was from Afzal Guru, a Kashmiri terrorist who was convicted of conspiracy in the December 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament and was sentenced to death by the Supreme Court of India in 2004.While the sentence was scheduled to be carried out on 20 October 2006, the pending action on his mercy plea resulted in him remaining on death row.He also took the controversial decision to impose President’s Rule in Bihar in 2005.In September 2003, in an interactive session in PGI Chandigarh, Kalam supported the need of Uniform Civil Code in India, keeping in view the population of the country. In May 2012, Kalam launched a programme for the youth of India called the What Can I Give Movement, with a central theme of defeating corruption.In 2011, Kalam was criticised by civil groups over his stand on the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant; he supported the establishment of the nuclear power plant and was accused of not speaking with the local people

Pratibha Devisingh Patil – First woman President of India

She is an Indian politician who served as the 12th President of India from 2007 to 2012. A member of the Indian National Congress, Patil is the only woman to have held the office.She had previously served as the Governor of Rajasthan from 2004 to 2007 . Patil’s term as the President of India saw various controversies and is widely considered as lacklustre.She commuted death sentences of 35 petitioners to life, a record. The President’s Office, however, defended this by saying that the President had granted clemency to the petitioners after due consideration and examining the advice of the Home Ministry. During her political career, Smt. Pratibha Patil has constantly been thinking of ways and means to better the position of women in India. In 2008, she initiated the setting up of a Committee of Governors to study and make recommendations for the “socio-economic empowerment of women”. The findings and suggestions of this committee finally led to the establishment of a Mission for the Socio-Economic Empowerment of Women by Govt. of India.

Smt. Patil has been an ardent advocate of conservation and sustainability of ecology for the common good of humankind. ROSHINI initiative was launched on 25th July, 2008 to make the President’s Estate spread across 340 acres into an eco-friendly, green and ‘model urban habitat’. The Residents Welfare Association, Women Self Help Groups and various Govt. Departments implemented ROSHINI projects in Solid Waste Management, Energy Management, Water Management to transform the ecological system of the President’s Estate. As part of subsequent initiative of “Universalization of Roshini” in 2011, these projects were implemented in various Raj Bhavans across the country. Hailing from an agricultural hometown herself, Smt. Pratibha Patil has always been aware of the socio-economic challenges of the farmers. Cognizant of the fact that a greater part of the cultivated land is rainfed, and also about 80% of the farmers involved in this rainfed farming are small farmers, she laid emphasis on policy initiatives for a Second Green Revolution with special focus on Rain-Fed/ Dryland Farming. She has also pushed for farmer-industry partnership to develop areas like food processing and to get better price realization for small farmers.She was also criticised for allegedly using government funds for taking trips overseas, often accompanied by relatives.

Patil set up Vidya Bharati Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, an educational institute which runs a chain of schools and colleges in Amravati, Jalgaon, Pune and Mumbai. She also set up Shram Sadhana Trust, which runs hostels for working women in New Delhi, Mumbai and Pune; and an engineering college for rural students in Jalgaon district.She also co-founded a cooperative sugar factory known as Sant Muktabai Sahakari Sakhar Karkhana at Muktainagar.In addition, Patil founded a cooperative bank, Pratibha Mahila Sahakari Bank, that ceased trading in February 2003 when its licence was cancelled by the Reserve Bank of India. 

Pranab Kumar Mukherjee 

He was an Indian statesman who served as the 13th President of India from 2012 until 2017. In a political career spanning five decades, Mukherjee was a senior leader in the Indian National Congress and occupied several ministerial portfolios in the Government of India.Prior to his election as President; Mukherjee was Union Finance Minister from 2009 to 2012. He was awarded India’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, in 2019 . Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 was promulgated by Pranab Mukherjee on 3 February 2013, providing for the amendment of the Indian Penal Code, Indian Evidence Act, and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 on laws related to sexual offences.As of July 2015, President Mukherjee had rejected 24 mercy pleas including those of Yakub Memon, Ajmal Kasab, and Afzal Guru.Pranab Mukherjee becomes first President of India to reply all the mercy petitions in his term for the death row inmates and also replying the petitions of former Presidents.

President Pranab Mukherjee also created a record of sorts by becoming the first head of state to teach school children. During the last two years of his presidency, he did what he used to do over 50 years ago – teach. He held classes at a school within the premises of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The Rashtrapati Bhavan’s Twitter account was launched on July 1, 2014 to connect directly with the public and disseminate information on the President’s activities. The account gained about 102,000 followers in 20 days. As President Pranab Mukherjee demits office, Rashtrapati Bhavan has 3,297,391 followers on Twitter.

President Pranab Mukherjee launched ‘Smartgram’ initiative on July 2, 2016 with an aim to develop villages into Humane, Happy and Hi-Tech townships. Under this initiative, five villages in the districts of Gurugram and Mewat in Haryana were selected to implement various programmes based on a convergence model with the support of the Centre, Haryana government, public and private sector organisations, NGOs and individuals. A large number of programmes in the field of education, skill development, infrastructure development, agriculture, health and clean energy were implemented. In order to project Rashtrapati Bhavan as a premier tourist destination in India, three tourist circuits – Rashtrapati Bhavan, Mughal Gardens and Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum – were opened on July, 25 2016. President Pranab Mukherjee launched ‘4S’ initiatives. ‘Sanskriti’ is aimed at the children of the President’s Estate in the age group of 7 to 15 years and their wholesome development through organising of painting, yoga, storytelling, clay modelling and singing classes at the Pranab Mukherjee Public Library. ‘Samagam’, a community initiative for senior citizens residing in the President’s Estate, offers an opportunity for them to get together every afternoon from Monday to Friday. Facilities like yoga classes, community singing, counselling services, free health check-ups and board games have been made available. Under ‘Sparsh’, an initiative for special children, a respite centre has been opened. ‘Sanskar’ aims at meeting the nutritional requirements of children at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Play School. A dilapidated building due for demolition located in Schedule ‘B’ of the President’s Estate was restored and converted into the Pranab Mukherjee Public Library for the welfare of the residents of the Estate. Highlighting the role of Rashtrapati Bhavan as a witness to modern Indian history and its unique feature as a heritage building, President Pranab Mukherjee revived the tradition of using the State Landau or Buggy. It was used for the Beating Retreat ceremony on January 29,  2014 for the first time after a gap of almost 30 years. President Pranab Mukherjee took several initiatives to adopt new technologies and solutions. The ‘E-Pustakalaya’ project for bar coding and cataloguing of books took place.

Ram Nath Kovind  – Current President of India 2022

He is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current president of India. He became only the second Dalit representative to become president after K. R. Narayanan, and also is the first BJP candidate to be elected to the post.

He is reported to have emphasised on the development of basic infrastructure for education in rural areas by helping in the construction of school buildings in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand under the MPLAD Scheme.

NOTE:

Varahagiri Venkatagiri, Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah, B.D. Jatti acted as the president in times of need for very short tenure. 

Varahagiri Venkatagiri acted as president in May 03, 1969 but was later on elected as the president of India on August 24, 1969

The visit of President of the United States Richard Nixon to India made Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah presidential term historic.

For BD Jatti his acting presidency was not without controversy. In April 1977, when Union Home Minister Charan Singh took the debatable decision to dissolve the assemblies of nine states, Jatti declined to sign the order and broke the tradition of the President accepting the advice of the Cabinet. Though he later signed the order, Jatti took the stand that the center’s action should not only be politically and constitutionally correct but also appear to be proper. 

POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT

The Executive Powers:

What is an Executive Power?

➔ Indian Government is divided into three organs: Legislature, Executive and Judiciary. Executive powers of the President are the powers exercised by the President as a part of the executive branch of the government given to the President by the Constitution of India.

Following are these powers:

● All executive powers of the Union are vested in him. These powers are exercised by him either directly or through subordinate officers in accordance with the Constitution.

● For every executive action that the Indian government takes, is to be taken in his name

● Power to appoint people:

1. Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG)
2. Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners
3. Chairman and members of the Union Public Service Commission
4. State Governors
5. Finance Commission of India chairman and members
6. Administrators of union territories

● Power to appoint councils and commissions:

1. The President can appoint a commission to investigate into the conditions of SCs (Scheduled Castes), STs (Scheduled Tribes) and OBCs (Other Backward Classes).
2. He appoints the inter-state council.

● He seeks administrative information from the Union government.

● He can ask the Prime Minister to make sure that every decision has been taken by a minister with the consideration of the council of ministers. 

● He can declare any area as a scheduled area and has to administer the scheduled areas and tribal areas.

The Legislative Powers:

What is a Legislative Power?

➔ Indian Government is divided into three organs: Legislature, Executive and Judiciary. Legislative powers of the President are the powers exercised by the President as a part of the legislative branch of the government that are derived from the Constitution of India.

Following are the legislative powers of the President:

● The President can summon(call) or Prorogue (end a session) of the Parliament and dissolve the Lok Sabha.

● He can address the Parliament at the commencement(opening) of the first session after the general election and the first session of each year.

● He can also summon(call) a joint sitting of both the Houses of Parliament which is presided over by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha.

● The President can appoint a member of the Lok Sabha to preside over its proceedings when the positions of Speaker as well as Deputy Speaker fall vacant.

● He also can appoint any member of the Rajya Sabha to preside over its proceedings when both the Chairman‘s and Deputy Chairman‘s office fall vacant.

● He can nominate 12 members to the Rajya Sabha with extraordinary accomplishments in

1. Literature
2. Science
3. Art
4. Social service
5. and two members to the Lok Sabha from the Anglo-Indian Community.

● President‘s prior recommendation or permission is needed for introducing bills in the parliament involving expenditure from Consolidated Fund of India, changing of boundaries of states or creation of a new state.

● When a bill is passed by the parliament, the President can

• give his assent to the bill or
• withhold his assent to the bill or
• return the bill (if it is not a Money Bill or a Constitutional Amendment Bill) for reconsideration of the Parliament.

● When a bill is passed by a State legislature and the governor reserves the bill for the president’s assent then the President can

• give his assent to the bill, or
• withhold his assent to the bill or
• direct the Governor to return the bill (if it is not a Money bill) for reconsideration of the State Legislature.

● The President can promulgate ordinances(temporary laws) when both the Houses of the Parliament are not in session. These ordinances must be approved by the Parliament within six weeks after it reassembles. The ordinance can be effective for a maximum period of six months and six weeks – Article 123. (The ordinance making power of the president is discussed in detail in the last section of the article)

● He consults the Election Commission of India (ECI) on questions of disqualifications of MPs (Member of Parliaments).

● He lays the reports of the following before the Parliament:

1. Comptroller and Auditor General
2. Union Public Service Commission
3. Finance Commission, etc.

Emergency Powers of the President:

What are emergency powers?

➔ Emergency powers of the president are the powers exercised by the President when an emergency is declared in the country. The Constitution of India envisages emergency of following three types: Article 352- National emergency Article 356-Emergency in state(president’s rule) Article 360- Financial emergency.

Following are the emergency powers of the president:

● The President may proclaim a state of emergency in the whole or part of India if he realises/feels that a serious situation has arisen in which the security of India on part of its territory might get threatened by war or external/internal aggression or rebellion with due recommendation of the council of ministers.

● The President can declare three types of emergencies:

1. National Emergency (Article 352):

1. National emergency is caused by war, external aggression or armed rebellion in the whole of India or a part of its territory.
2. The President can declare national emergency only on a written request by the Cabinet Ministers headed by the Prime Minister and the proclamation must be approved by the Parliament within one month.
3. National emergency can be imposed for six months. It can be extended by six months by repeated parliamentary approval, up to a maximum of three years.
4. Under national emergency, Fundamental Rights of Indian citizens can be suspended.

➔ The six freedoms under Right to Freedom are automatically suspended.

➔ The Right to Life and Personal Liberty cannot be suspended.

      Such an emergency has been invoked at three instances:

1. 1962 (Indo-China war)
2. 1971 (Indo-Pakistan war)
3. 1975 to 1977 (declared by Indira Gandhi on account of “internal disturbance”).

2.State Emergency or President’s Rule (Article 356):

1. A State Emergency can be imposed via the following:

➔  If that state failed to run constitutionally i.e. constitutional machinery has failed – Article 356

➔ If that state is not working according to the given direction of the Union Government – Article 365

2. Such an emergency must be approved by the Parliament within a period of two months.
3. It can be imposed from six months to a maximum period of three years with repeated parliamentary approval every six months.
4. If needed, the emergency can be extended for more than three years, by a constitutional amendment, for example in the case of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.
5. During such an emergency, the Governor administers the state in the name of the President. The Legislative Assembly can be dissolved or may remain suspended.
6. The Parliament makes laws on the 66 subjects of the state list. All money bills have to be referred to the Parliament for approval.

3. Financial Emergency (Article – 360):

1. The President can proclaim a Financial Emergency if financial stability of India is threatened.
2. This proclamation must be approved by the Parliament within two months.
3. This type of Emergency has not been declared so far.

Financial Powers:

● A money bill can be introduced in the Parliament only with the recommendation of the president.

● The President lays the Annual Financial Statement or the Union budget before the Parliament.

● The President can make grant permission to use money out of the Contingency Fund of India to meet unforeseen/emergency expenses.

● The President constitutes a Finance commission after every five years to recommend the distribution of the taxes between the centre and the States.

● To make a demand for grants, his recommendation is necessary.

Diplomatic powers:

● International treaties and agreements are signed on behalf of the President. However, they are subject to approval of the parliament.

● The president represents India in International forms and affairs and may send and receive diplomats like ambassadors, high commissioners.

Military powers:

● The President is the supreme commander of the defence forces of India

● The President can declare war and conclude peace, subject to Parliaments‘ approval.

● The President appoints:

• The chief of Army
• The chief of Navy
• The chief of the Air Force.

Judicial powers:

● The president appoints the Chief Justice of the Union Judiciary and other judges on the advice of the Chief Justice.

● The President dismisses the judges if and only if the two Houses of the Parliament pass resolutions to that effect by two-thirds majority of the members present.

● The president enjoys the judicial immunity

● No criminal proceedings can be initiated against the president during the term in office

● The president is not answerable for the exercise of his/her duties.

● The president has the right to grant pardon.

● Pardoning Power of the President: Article 72 of the Constitution empowers the President to grant pardons to persons who have been tried and convicted of any offence in all cases where the:

1.  Punishment or sentence is for an offence against a Union Law;
2. Punishment or sentence is by a court martial (military court); and
3. Sentence is a sentence of death. 

The pardoning power of the President is independent of the Judiciary. The object of conferring this power on the President is two-fold:

(a) to keep the door open for correcting any judicial errors in the operation of law; and,

(b) to afford relief from a sentence, which the President regards as unduly harsh.

● The pardoning power of the President includes the following:

1. Pardon : It removes both the sentence and the conviction and completely releases the convict from all sentences, punishments and disqualifications.

2. Commutation : It denotes the change of one form of punishment for another lighter form of punishment. For example, a death sentence may be commuted to a simple imprisonment.

3. Remission : It implies reducing the period of sentence without changing its character. For example, a sentence of rigorous imprisonment for two years may be remitted to rigorous imprisonment for one year.

4. Respite : It denotes awarding a lesser sentence in place of the punishment that should ideally be given due to some special fact, such as the physical disability of a convict or the pregnancy of a woman offender.

5. Reprieve : It implies a stay of the execution of a sentence (especially of death sentence) for a temporary period. Its purpose is to enable the convict to have time to seek pardon or commutation from the President.

Veto Power of the President:

● When a bill is presented to the President for his assent, he has three alternatives (under Article 111 of the Constitution):

1. He may give his assent to the bill, or

2. He may withhold his assent to the bill, or

3. He may return the bill (if it is not a Money bill) for reconsideration of the Parliament.

Note: However, if the bill is passed again by the Parliament with or without amendments and again presented to the President, the President must give his assent to the bill.

● There are four types of veto:

1. Absolute veto,i.e., withholding of assent to the bill passed by the legislature.

2. Qualified veto, which can be overruled by the legislature with a higher majority.

3. Suspensive veto, which can be overruled by the legislature with an ordinary majority.

4. Pocket veto, that is, taking no action on the bill passed by the legislature.

● Of the above four, the President of India is vested with three—absolute veto, suspensive veto and pocket veto.

➔    Absolute Veto

● It refers to the power of the President to withhold his assent to a bill passed by the Parliament.

● The bill then ends and does not become an act.

● Usually, this veto is exercised in the following two cases:

(a) With respect to private members‘ bills (i.e., bills introduced by any member of Parliament who is not a minister); and

(b) With respect to the government bills when the cabinet resigns and the new cabinet advises the President not to give his assent to such bills.

➔    Suspensive Veto

● The President exercises this veto when he returns a bill for reconsideration of the Parliament.

● However, if the bill is passed again by the Parliament with or without amendments and again presented to the President, it is obligatory for the President to give his assent to the bill.

● The President does not possess this veto in the case of money bills.

● The President can either give his assent to a money bill or withhold his assent to a money bill but cannot return it for the reconsideration of the Parliament.

● Normally, the President gives his assent to the money bill as it is introduced in the Parliament with his previous permission.

➔    Pocket Veto

● In this case, the President neither ratifies or rejects nor returns the bill, but simply keeps the bill pending for an indefinite period.

● The President can exercise this veto power as the Constitution does not prescribe any time-limit within which he has to take the decision with respect to a bill presented to him for his assent.

● In the USA, on the other hand, the President has to return the bill for reconsideration within 10 days. Hence, it is remarked that the pocket of the Indian President is bigger than that of the AmericanPresident.

● It should be noted here that the President has no veto power in respect of a constitutional amendment bill.

➔ Presidential Veto over State Legislation 

● A bill passed by a state legislature can become an act only if it receives the assent of the governor or the President (in case the bill is reserved for the consideration of the President). 

● When a bill, passed by a state legislature, is presented to the governor for his assent, he has four alternatives (under Article 200 of the Constitution):

1. He may give his assent to the bill, or

2. He may withhold his assent to the bill, or

3. He may return the bill (if it is not a money bill) for reconsideration of the state legislature,or

4. He may reserve the bill for the consideration of the President.

Type of bill	Central Legislation	State Legislation
	Can be ratified	Can be ratified
Ordinary bill	Can be rejected	Can be rejected
	Can be returned	Can be returned
Money bill	Can be ratified	Can be ratified
	Can be rejected	Can be rejected
Constitutional Amendment bill	Can only be ratified	Cannot be introduced in state legislature

Ordinance-making power of the President (under Legislative power):

What is an Ordinance?

➔ Article 123 of the Constitution empowers the President to promulgate ordinances during the recess of Parliament.  These ordinances have the same force and effect as an act of Parliament, but are in the nature of temporary laws. 

➔ The ordinance-making power is the most important legislative power of the President.  It has been vested in him to deal with unforeseen or urgent matters.  But, the exercise of this power is subject to certain conditions.

The conditions:

1.He can promulgate an ordinance only when both the Houses of Parliament are not in session or when either of the two Houses of Parliament is not in session.

2.An ordinance can also be issued when only one House is in session because a law can be passed by both the Houses and not by one House alone.

3.An ordinance made when both the Houses are in session is void.

4.He can make an ordinance only when he is satisfied that the circumstances exist that force him to take immediate action. The decision of the President to issue an ordinance can be questioned in a court on the ground that the President has prorogued one House or both Houses of Parliament deliberately to promulgate an ordinance on a controversial subject, so as to bypass the parliamentary decision.

● Every ordinance issued by the President must be laid before both the Houses of Parliament when it reassembles. If the ordinance is approved by both the Houses, it becomes an act. If Parliament takes no action at all, the ordinance lapses on the expiry of six weeks after the reassembly of Parliament.

● The ordinance may also cease to operate even earlier than the prescribed six weeks, if both the Houses of Parliament pass resolutions disapproving it.

● The President can also withdraw an ordinance at any time. However, he can exercise this power only on the advice of the council of ministers headed by the prime minister.

● An ordinance like any other legislation, can be retrospective, that is, it may come into force from a back date.  It may modify or repeal any act of Parliament or another ordinance.  However, it cannot be issued to amend the Constitution.   

WHAT IS PRESIDENT’S RULE?

President’s rule is the suspension of state government and imposition of direct Union government rule in a state. Under Article 356 of the Constitution of India, in the event that a state government is unable to function according to Constitutional provisions, the Union government can take direct control of the state machinery. Subsequently, executive authority is exercised through the centrally appointed governor, who has the authority to appoint other administrators to assist them. The administrators are usually nonpartisan retired civil servants.

Chhattisgarh and Telangana are the only states where the President’s rule has not been imposed so far.

Imposition on states:

In practice, President’s rule has been imposed in a state under any one of the following different circumstances:

·         A state legislature is unable to elect a leader as chief minister for a time prescribed by the Governor of that state, at the Will of Governor.

·         Breakdown of a coalition leading to the Chief minister having minority support in the house and the Chief minister fails/will definitely fail to prove otherwise, within a time prescribed by the Governor of that state.

·         Loss of majority in the assembly due to a vote of no-confidence in the house.

·         Elections postponed for unavoidable reasons like war, epidemic, pandemic or natural disasters.

·         On the report of the Governor of the state if said state’s Constitutional machinery or legislature fails to abide by Constitutional norms.

If approved by both houses, President’s rule can continue for 6 months. It can be extended for a maximum of 3 years with the approval of the Parliament done every 6 months. If the Lok Sabha is dissolved during this time, the rule is valid for 30 days from the first sitting of the Lok Sabha provided that this continuance has already been approved by Rajya Sabha. The 44th Amendment Act of 1978 introduced a new provision to put a restraint on the power of Parliament to extend the President’s rule in a state. According to this provision, the president’s rule can only be extended over a year every 6 months under the following conditions:

·         There is already a national emergency throughout India, or in the whole or any part of the state.

·         The Election Commission certifies that elections cannot be conducted in the state.

President’s rule can be revoked at any time by the President and does not need Parliament’s approval.

List of instances when President’s rule was imposed:

State	Term	Date of imposition	Date of revocation	Duration	Reason(s) to impose the President’s rule
Andhra Pradesh	1	18 January 1973	10 December 1973	327 days	Breakdown of law & order due to Jai Andhra Agitation, in P. V. Narasimha Rao’s tenure.
2	28 February 2014	8 June 2014	100 days	Political impasse following the resignation of Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy and several other congress party legislators from the Government as well as the Party, in protest against Indian Parliament passing Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill to bifurcate united Andhra Pradesh and create a separate Telangana state. President’s rule was revoked from Telangana areas on 2 June 2014 and bifurcated Andhra Pradesh areas on 8 June 2014. President rule reimposed unlawfully by the President after the two months time limit without taking approval of the Parliament under Article 356.
Andhra State	1	15 November 1954	29 March 1955	134 days	Loss of majority
Arunachal Pradesh	1	3 November 1979	18 January 1980	76 days	Loss of majority following defections in a fluid political environment during Janata party rule at the centre.
2	25 January 2016	19 February 2016	26 days	21 Congress MLAs joined hands with 11 of the BJP and two Independents, making the current government a minority government. The Supreme Court declared the imposition of president rule as ultra vires and reinstated the dismissed congress led government in the state. In a landmark judgement, it found fault with the unconstitutional role played by the Governor by interfering in the activities of legislatures and speaker of the Vidhan Shaba
Assam	1	12 December 1979	5 December 1980	359 days	‘Assam Agitation’ against illegal foreign nationals staying in Assam started to take root under the leadership of the All Assam Students Union (AASU). The violence fuelled by United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) resulted in breakdown of law and order.
2	30 June 1981	13 January 1982	197 days	Congress (I) government led by Anwara Taimur representing immigrant minorities collapsed following intensification of ‘Assam Agitation’ against illegal foreign nationals staying in Assam.
3	19 March 1982	27 February 1983	345 days	Congress (I) government led by Kesab Gogoi representing ethnic Asom people collapsed following continued violence in Assam.
4	28 November 1990	30 June 1991	214 days	Government dismissed in spite of AGP CM Prafulla Mahanta enjoying majority support in the Assembly. The dismissal was triggered apparently by the threat to internal security due to banned organisation ULFA’s activities. During the president’s rule, Operation Bajrang was launched to flush out ULFA militants.
Bihar	1	29 June 1968	26 February 1969	242 days	Loss of majority following defections in a fluid political environment.
2	4 July 1969	16 February 1970	227 days	Loss of majority following defections in a fluid political environment due to split in ruling Congress party
3	9 January 1972	19 March 1972	70 days	Loss of majority following defections in a fluid political environment.
4	30 April 1977	24 June 1977	55 days	Government dismissed in spite of Jagannath Mishra enjoying majority support in Assembly
5	17 February 1980	8 June 1980	112 days	Government dismissed in spite of Ram Sundar Das enjoying majority support in Assembly
6	28 March 1995	5 April 1995	8 days	President’s rule imposed for a brief period of one week to facilitate passage of vote on account (to permit day-to-day government expenses in Bihar) by Parliament while awaiting the results of Assembly elections held during the Chief Ministership of Laloo Prasad.
7	12 February 1999	9 March 1999	25 days	Breakdown of law and order, killings of 11 Dalits at Narayanpur. The Vajpayee Government revoked the president’s rule within 26 days since the coalition did not have a majority in the Rajya Sabha.
8	7 March 2005	24 November 2005	262 days	Indecisive outcome of elections. In a landmark judgement, Supreme Court ruled that the imposition of the president’s rule without giving the chance to the elected legislatures to form new government is unconstitutional and mala fide act by the president
Delhi	1	14 February 2014	11 February 2015	362 days	Arvind Kejriwal resigned as Chief Minister after failing to table the Jan Lokpal Bill in the Delhi Assembly.
Goa	1	2 December 1966	5 April 1967	124 days	The Union Territory of Goa’s Assembly was dissolved to conduct an opinion poll to determine whether Goa should be merged with Maharashtra.
2	27 April 1979	16 January 1980	264 days	Loss of majority following split in the ruling MGP Party
3	14 December 1990	25 January 1991	42 days	C.M. resigned consequent upon his disqualification by High Court – No other Government found viable
4	9 February 1999	9 June 1999	120 days	Loss of majority and no alternate claimant to form next government
5	4 March 2005	7 June 2005	95 days	Government dismissed after controversial confidence vote secured in the Assembly by CM Pratap Sinh Rane
Gujarat	1	12 May 1971	17 March 1972	310 days	Loss of majority following vertical split in Congress during 1969 presidential election
2	9 February 1974	18 June 1975	1 year, 129 days	Chimanbhai Patel led Congress government resigned due to Navnirman Movement Anti-Corruption protests. The protesters forced MLA’s resignations, forcing dissolution of the assembly.
3	12 March 1976	24 December 1976	287 days	“Non-Passage” of budget leading to collapse of government
4	17 February 1980	8 June 1980	112 days	Government dismissed in spite of Babubhai J Patel enjoying majority support in the Assembly
5	19 September 1996	23 October 1996	34 days	Government dismissed following a controversial confidence vote. The Assembly was placed in suspended animation, which led to subsequent installation of Vaghela government, supported by Congress
Haryana	1	21 November 1967	22 May 1968	183 days	Government dismissed in spite of having a tenuous majority.
2	30 April 1977	21 June 1977	52 days	Government dismissed in spite of B D Gupta enjoying majority support in Assembly
3	6 April 1991	23 July 1991	108 days	Rebellion in the ruling party
Himachal Pradesh	1	30 April 1977	22 June 1977	53 days	Government dismissed in spite of Thakur Ram Lal enjoying majority support in Assembly
2	15 December 1992	3 December 1993	353 days	Government dismissed in the aftermath of the destruction of Babri Masjid-Ram Janmasthan in Uttar Pradesh.
Jammu and Kashmir(State)	1	26 March 1977	9 July 1977	105 days	Sheikh Abdullah led National Conference government bowed out after being reduced to a minority following withdrawal of support by the Congress Party
2	6 March 1986	7 November 1986	246 days	Loss of majority
3	19 January 1990	9 October 1996	6 years, 264 days	Insurgency and breakdown of law and order.
4	18 October 2002	2 November 2002	15 days	Indecisive outcome of elections.
5	11 July 2008	5 January 2009	178 days	Loss of majority following collapse of coalition. CM Gulam Nabi Azad’s decision to transfer land for Amarnath pilgrimage led to PDP pulling out of coalition Govt.
6	9 January 2015	1 March 2015	51 days	Failure of Government formation after fractured verdict in Assembly elections. BJP & PDP reached an understanding to form an alliance to form Government in J&K
7	8 January 2016	4 April 2016	87 days	Death of chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed
8	19 June 2018	30 October 2019	2 years, 340 days	Resignation of the Chief Minister following loss of coalition partner. On 31 October 2019, Jammu and Kashmir state was split into two union territories, UT of Jammu and Kashmir and UT of Ladakh.
Jammu and Kashmir(Union Territory)	1	31 October 2019	present	1 year, 206 days	To continue President’s rule imposed on 19 June 2018 as Jammu and Kashmir state was split into two union territories, UT of Jammu and Kashmir and UT of Ladakh. It was imposed under section 73 of Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 as Article 356 does not apply to Union Territories.
Jharkhand	1	19 January 2009	29 December 2009	344 days	Loss of majority
2	1 June 2010	11 September 2010	102 days	Loss of majority
3	18 January 2013	12 July 2013	175 days	Loss of majority BJP’s ruling coalition partner JMM withdrew its support to the government pushing it into a minority. Chief Minister Arjun Munda resigned and sought dissolution of the state Assembly.
Karnataka	1	19 March 1971	20 March 1972	1 year, 1 day	Loss of majority
2	31 December 1977	28 February 1978	59 days	Government dismissed in spite of Congress CM Devraj Urs enjoying majority support in Assembly
3	21 April 1989	30 November 1989	223 days	Loss of majority of CM S. R. Bommai, followed by dissolution of the Assembly. On an appeal by S. R. Bommai, in a landmark judgement delivered in 1994, the Indian Supreme Court laid out the procedure to be followed before dissolving an elected assembly. The historic ruling in this case reduced the scope for misuse of Article 356 by future central governments and governors.
4	10 October 1990	17 October 1990	7 days	Government of Veerendra Patil dismissed by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and state was placed under president’s rule with the assembly placed in suspended animation until next chief Minister was elected
5	9 October 2007	11 November 2007	33 days	Loss of majority
6	20 November 2007	27 May 2008	189 days	Loss of majority
Kerala	1	31 July 1959	22 February 1960	206 days	Government dismissed in spite of Communist CM EMS Namboodiripad enjoying majority support in Assembly
2	10 September 1964	6 March 1967	2 years, 177 days	Loss of majority followed by indecisive outcome of elections
3	1 August 1970	4 October 1970	64 days	Loss of majority
4	1 December 1979	25 January 1980	55 days	Loss of majority
Madhya Pradesh	1	29 April 1977	25 June 1977	57 days	Government dismissed in spite of Shyama Charan Shukla enjoying majority support in Assembly
2	18 February 1980	8 June 1980	111 days	Government dismissed in spite of Sundar Lal Patwa enjoying majority support in Assembly
3	15 December 1992	7 December 1993	357 days	Govt. dismissed in the aftermath of Babri Masjid-Ram Janmasthan destruction in Uttar Pradesh.
Maharashtra	1	17 February 1980	8 June 1980	112 days	Govt. dismissed in spite of Sharad Pawar enjoying majority support in the Assembly
2	28 September 2014	31 October 2014	33 days	Govt. dismissed since Congress Separated from its allies NCP and Others.
3	12 November 2019	23 November 2019	11 days	No party could form a government after a fractured election verdict and Shiv Sena broke the pre-poll alliance it had with the BJP. See also: 2019 Maharashtra political crisis.
Manipur	1	12 January 1967	19 March 1967	66 days	First Elections to Manipur Union Territory Assembly held.
2	25 October 1967	18 February 1968	116 days	Short lived ministry collapsed following the resignation of the speaker, resulting in neither ruling nor opposition congress having a clear majority in the assembly. Assembly kept in suspended animation.
3	17 October 1969	22 March 1972	2 years, 157 days	Violent secessionist insurgency and statehood demands resulted in breakdown of law and order
4	28 March 1973	3 March 1974	340 days	President’s rule was imposed even though the opposition had a “tenuous” majority and could have formed a government
5	16 May 1977	28 June 1977	43 days	Collapse of Government following defections
6	14 November 1979	13 January 1980	60 days	Discontent within the Janata Party Government and corruption charges led to dismissal of the government and dissolution of the Assembly.
7	28 February 1981	18 June 1981	110 days	Incumbent Government fell following defections. Governor did not permit an alternate government to be formed by the People’s Democratic Front on the basis of his assessment regarding the stability of the proposed ministry.
8	7 January 1992	7 April 1992	91 days	Incumbent coalition Government fell following defections. The president’s rule imposed keeping the assembly in suspension.
9	31 December 1993	13 December 1994	347 days	1000 persons died in Naga-Kuki clashes and continued violence
10	2 June 2001	6 March 2002	277 days	Loss of majority
	1	11 October 1991	5 February 1992	117 days	The Centre imposed president’s rule in Meghalaya in the wake of a political crisis after the then Speaker PR Kyndiah suspended five MLAs, mostly independents, on grounds of defection.
2	18 March 2009	12 May 2009	55 days	Government dismissed after controversial confidence vote secured in the Assembly by CM Donkupar Roy
Mizoram	1	11 May 1977	1 June 1978	1 year, 21 days	Mizo Union Ministry led by Chief Minister Chhunga resigned in May 1977, ostensibly to facilitate the progress of peace talks. see Lost Opportunities: 50 Years of Insurgency in the North-east and India’s Response, By S. P. Sinha, Page 95
2	10 November 1978	8 May 1979	179 days	Chief Minister Sailo’s refusal to grant undue favours caused dissension in his party which led to the fall of his government and imposition of president’s rule. see Lost Opportunities: 50 Years of Insurgency in the North-east and India’s Response, By S. P. Sinha, pages 96–97
3	7 September 1988	24 January 1989	139 days	Defections reduced the Government to minority
Nagaland	1	20 March 1975	25 November 1977	2 years, 250 days	Defections and counter defections led to imposition of president’s rule
2	7 August 1988	25 January 1989	171 days	The state was under a brief spell of central rule again after the Hokishe Sema-led Congress government was reduced to a minority. The decision was challenged in the Supreme Court and held to be invalid in 1994.
3	2 April 1992	22 February 1993	326 days	Fluid party position and deteriorating law and order situation
4	3 January 2008	12 March 2008	69 days	Government dismissed after controversial confidence vote secured in the Assembly by CM Neiphiu Rio
Odisha	1	25 February 1961	23 June 1961	118 days	Harekrishna Mahtab led Congress-Gantantra Parishad Minority Government resigned on 21 February 1961 due to differences in the Congress Party. President’s rule was imposed on 25 February 1961.
2	11 January 1971	3 April 1971	82 days	Break-up of coalition
3	3 March 1973	6 March 1974	1 year, 3 days	Facing imminent collapse of government, incumbent chief minister recommended dissolution of assembly and fresh elections.
4	16 December 1976	29 December 1976	13 days	Chief Minister Nandini Satpathy was forced out and assembly placed under suspended animation. A new Congress government was sworn in after revocation of the president’s rule.
5	30 April 1977	26 June 1977	57 days	Government dismissed in spite of Binayak Acharya enjoying majority support in Assembly
6	17 February 1980	9 June 1980	113 days	Government dismissed in spite of Nilamani Routray enjoying majority support in Assembly
Patiala and East Punjab States Union	1	5 March 1953	8 March 1954	1 year, 3 days	President’s rule was invoked in the erstwhile PEPSU (Patiala and East Punjab States Union ) State when the Akali Dal government, led by Gian Singh Rarewala, was dismissed
Puducherry	1	18 September 1968	17 March 1969	180 days	Assembly was dissolved and president’s rule imposed as opposition parties had a chance to form a government after the fall of the Congress government.
2	3 January 1974	6 March 1974	62 days	Assembly dissolved after the fall of the DMK government following the decision of two ministers to join the newly formed AIADMK.
3	28 March 1974	2 July 1977	3 years, 96 days	Fall of coalition government of AIADMK, Congress(O)following division of votes by Congress(R) and DMK. The Assembly was dissolved.
4	12 November 1978	16 January 1980	1 year, 65 days	Fall of government due to political instability
5	24 June 1983	16 March 1985	1 year, 265 days	Government dismissed following withdrawal of Congress(I) from coalition government. In spite of the incumbent chief minister asking for an opportunity to prove his majority on the floor of the house, the assembly was dissolved.
6	4 March 1991	3 July 1991	121 days	DMK Government dismissed in spite of having a majority in the Assembly
7	25 February 2021	7 May 2021	71 days	Congress Government Resigned Due To Loss of majority and no alternate claimant to form next government
Punjab	1	20 June 1951	17 April 1952	302 days	Pandit Nehru kept the Punjab Assembly in suspension for nine months and 28 days to help the state Congress government get its act together.
2	5 July 1966	1 November 1966	119 days	State administration was taken over, ostensibly to facilitate bifurcation of Punjab state into two, Punjab and Haryana
3	23 August 1968	17 February 1969	178 days	Break-up of coalition
4	14 June 1971	17 March 1972	277 days	Following poor performance in March, 1971 Lok Sabha Elections, incumbent Chief Minister advised dissolving the state assembly and holding fresh elections to state legislature.
5	30 April 1977	20 June 1977	51 days	Government dismissed in spite of Giani Zail Singh enjoying majority support in Assembly
6	17 February 1980	6 June 1980	110 days	Government dismissed in spite of Parkash Singh Badal enjoying majority support in Assembly
7	10 October 1983	29 September 1985	1 year, 354 days	Insurgency and breakdown of law and order
8	11 May 1987	25 February 1992	4 years, 259 days	Insurgency and breakdown of law and order
Rajasthan	1	13 March 1967	26 April 1967	44 days	Indecisive outcome of elections
2	29 April 1977	22 June 1977	54 days	Government dismissed in spite of Hari Dev Joshi enjoying majority support in Assembly
3	16 February 1980	6 June 1980	111 days	Government dismissed in spite of Bhairon Singh Shekhawat enjoying majority support in Assembly
4	15 December 1992	4 December 1993	354 days	Government dismissed in spite of Bhairon Singh Shekhawat enjoying majority support in Assembly
Sikkim	1	18 August 1978	18 October 1979	1 year, 61 days	Loss of majority following the split in Kazi Lhendup Dorji led Janata Party government. The central government imposed president’s rule and followed up with electoral reforms before ordering fresh elections.
2	25 May 1984	8 March 1985	287 days	Congress Government formed following the induced collapse of Nar Bahadur Bhandari Sikkim Janata Parishad Government was dismissed as it did not enjoy a majority in the Assembly.
Tamil Nadu	1	31 January 1976	29 June 1977	1 year, 149 days	The government headed by former chief minister M. Karunanidhi was dismissed by former prime minister Indira Gandhi in spite of enjoying majority in the legislative assembly, due to charges of corruption while the Sarkaria Commission was set up to probe the allegations.
2	17 February 1980	8 June 1980	112 days	The government, headed by former chief minister M. G. Ramachandran, was dismissed by former prime minister Indira Gandhi in spite of enjoying a majority in the legislative assembly.
3	30 January 1988	26 January 1989	362 days	The government is headed by former chief minister V. N. Janaki Ramachandran was dismissed by former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi after a controversial confidence vote secured by her in the legislative assembly.
4	30 January 1991	23 June 1991	144 days	The government headed by former chief minister M. Karunanidhi was dismissed by former prime minister Chandra Shekhar on charges of supporting anti-national activities, in spite of the governor Surjit Singh Barnala’s report and enjoying majority in the legislative assembly.
Travancore-Cochin	1	23 March 1956	5 April 1957	1 year, 13 days	Loss of majority following split in Congress Party
Tripura	1	1 November 1971	20 March 1972	140 days	In the backdrop of refugee influx due to Bangladesh Liberation War, split in the Congress and Communist agitation for Tripura to become a full-fledged state, president’s rule was imposed. On 1 January 1972 Tripura became a State and assembly elections were held subsequently.
2	5 November 1977	5 January 1978	61 days	Collapse of short lived government in a fluid political environment
3	11 March 1993	10 April 1993	30 days	Elections were postponed from 15 February 1993 to 3 April 1993 on account of deteriorating law and order situation. Caretaker CM resigns.
Uttar Pradesh	1	25 February 1968	26 February 1969	1 year, 1 day	Loss of majority following withdrawal of support by Congress (R) led by Indira Gandhi.
2	1 October 1970	18 October 1970	17 days	The Charan Singh Ministry supported by Congress collapsed following a split in Congress party.
3	13 June 1973	8 November 1973	148 days	Chief Minister resigned as a result of the 1973 Provincial Armed Constabulary revolt.
4	30 November 1975	21 January 1976	52 days	Congress Government of H N Bahuguna tendered resignation due to infighting within the party.
5	30 April 1977	23 June 1977	54 days	Government dismissed in spite of N D Tiwari enjoying majority support in the Assembly.
6	17 February 1980	9 June 1980	113 days	Government dismissed in spite of Banarasi Das enjoying majority support in the Assembly.
7	6 December 1992	4 December 1993	363 days	Government dismissed in the aftermath of the destruction of Babri Masjid-Ram Janmasthan.
8	18 October 1995	21 March 1997	1 year, 154 days	Loss of majority following collapse of coalition followed by indecisive outcome of fresh elections.
9	8 March 2002	3 May 2002	56 days	Indecisive outcome of elections.
Uttarakhand	1	27 March 2016	21 April 2016	25 days	Collapse of CM Harish Rawat’s ministry following a split in the state unit of Congress party. In the hearing of related case, Uttarakhand High Court declared the president’s rule imposition by the President unconstitutional and restored the Harish Rawat’s led government in the state
2	22 April 2016	11 May 2016	19 days	The Supreme Court of India held the stay on Uttarakhand High Court’s verdict thus reinstating the president’s rule in the state.
Vindhya Pradesh	1	8 April 1949	13 March 1952	2 years, 340 days	President’s rule was imposed in the erstwhile Vindhya Pradesh State when the Chief Minister resigned. The president’s rule was revoked following independent India’s first general elections.
West Bengal	1	1 July 1962	8 July 1962	7 days	Interim Period between death of incumbent Chief Minister and election of new leader.
2	20 February 1968	25 February 1969	1 year, 5 days	State placed under the president’s rule following the collapse of two successive short lived coalition governments.
3	19 March 1970	2 April 1971	1 year, 14 days	Collapse of United Front Coalition between Bangla Congress and CPI(M)
4	28 June 1971	19 March 1972	265 days	Collapse of United Front Coalition between Bangla Congress and CPI(M)