TOPIC: THE PRESIDENT ROLE & THE GUIDELINES FOR IMPOSINGH THE

PRESIDENT ROLE.

UNDER THE GUIDENCE OF: PROF. JOBI JOSEPH.

Submitted by :

Name: Tanvi P. Desai

Class: T.Y.B.L.S L.L.B

Roll No. : 20513

D.O.S: 25/03/2023

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INDEX:

Sr No. Topics Page No.

1. Introduction to president of India 3

2. Origin 4

3. Powers and Duties of President 5-7

4. Legislative Powers and Functions 8-10

5. Power to Promulgate Ordinances 11

6. Diplomatic Powers 13-15

7 Impeachment 16

8. Succession 17

9 List of Indian President 18

10. What’s the Tenure of the President 19

11 Powers to make appointments 20

12 Conclusion 21

13. Webilography 22

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PRESIDENT OF INDIA:

President of India is referred to as the first citizen of India. The Indian President is elected by
an electoral college composed of the elected members of the Parliament, Lok Sabha, Rajya
Sabha and Vidhan Sabha.

There have been 15 personalities who served as Indian Presidents since the adoption of the
Indian Constitution in 1950 and there have been tenures when the country was headed by an
acting President. In this article, you will get to know about all the Presidents of India from
1950 to 2022.

The president of India is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the

nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-
chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu is the 15th and current president, having
taken office from 25 July 2022.

The office of president was created when India officially became a republic on 26 January
1950 after gaining independence on 15th August 1947, when its constitution came into force.
The president is indirectly elected by an electoral college comprising both houses of
the Parliament of India and the legislative assemblies of each of India's states and territories,
who themselves are all directly elected by the citizens.

Article 53 of the Constitution of India states that the president can exercise their powers
directly or by subordinate authority (with few exceptions), though all of the executive powers
vested in the president are, in practice, exercised by the prime minister (a subordinate
authority) with the advice of the Cabinet Ministers.  The president is bound by the
constitution to act on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet as long as the advice does
not violate the constitution.

India achieved independence from the British on 15 August 1947, initially as
a dominion within the Common wealth of Nations with George VI as king, represented in the
country by a governor-general.  Following independence, the Constituent Assembly of India,
under the leadership of B. R. Ambedkar, undertook the process of drafting a completely new
constitution for the country. The Constitution of India was eventually enacted on 26
November 1949 and came into force on 26 January 1950, making India a republic. The
offices of monarch and governor-general were replaced by the new office of President of
India, with Rajendra Prasad as its first incumbent. India retained its Commonwealth
membership per the London Declaration, recognising The King as "the symbol of the free
association of its independent member nations and as such the Head of the Commonwealth."

1
https://rashtrapatisachivalaya.gov.in/

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The Indian constitution accords to the president the responsibility and authority to defend and
protect the Constitution of India and its rule of law. Invariably, any action taken by the
executive or legislature entities of the constitution shall become law only after the president's
assent. The president shall not accept any actions of the executive or legislature which are
unconstitutional. The president is the foremost, most empowered and prompt defender of the
constitution (Article 60), who has pre-emptive power for ensuring constitutionality in the
actions of the executive or legislature. The role of the judiciary in upholding the Constitution
of India is the second line of defence in nullifying any unconstitutional actions of the
executive and legislative entities of the Indian Union.

Given below are a few facts related to the President of India and the past Presidents which
have served the country.

 Dr. Rajendra Prasad was the longest-serving Indian President. He completed two
tenures as the President of the country
 The shortest-serving President was the third Indian President, Zakir Hussain. He
passed away while he was in his office
 Neelam Sanjiva Reddy was not just the youngest President of the country but was also
the first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh
 Pratibha Patil was the first and the only women President of India
 If the President of India intents to resign from his post, he/she needs to do it in
accordance with the procedure prescribed in Article 61 of the Indian Constitution. The
President needs to give a hand-written letter to the Vice President, in case of
resignation
 The President is elected by the members of both the House of Parliament and the
elected members of the legislative assembly of States and Union Territories
2

ORIGIN:

2
https://rashtrapatisachivalaya.gov.in/

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India achieved independence from the British on 15 August 1947, initially as
a dominion within the Commonwealth of Nations with George VI as king, represented in the
country by a governor-general.[4] Following independence, the Constituent Assembly of
India, under the leadership of B. R. Ambedkar, undertook the process of drafting a
completely new constitution for the country. The Constitution of India was eventually
enacted on 26 November 1949 and came into force on 26 January 1950,[5]: 26  making India
a republic.[6]: 9  The offices of monarch and governor-general were replaced by the new office
of President of India, with Rajendra Prasad as its first incumbent.[6]: 1  India retained its
Commonwealth membership per the London Declaration, recognising The King as "the
symbol of the free association of its independent member nations and as such the Head of the
Commonwealth."[7]
The Indian constitution accords to the president the responsibility and authority to defend and
protect the Constitution of India and its rule of law. [8] Invariably, any action taken by the
executive or legislature entities of the constitution shall become law only after the president's
assent. The president shall not accept any actions of the executive or legislature which are
unconstitutional. The president is the foremost, most empowered and prompt defender of the
constitution (Article 60), who has pre-emptive power for ensuring constitutionality in the
actions of the executive or legislature. The role of the judiciary in upholding the Constitution
of India is the second line of defence in nullifying any unconstitutional actions of the
executive and legislative entities of the Indian Union.3

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_India
3

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POWERS AND DUTIES:

Under the draft constitution the President occupies the same position as the King under the
English Constitution. He is the head of the state but not of the Executive. He represents the
Nation but does not rule the Nation. He is the symbol of the Nation. His place in the
administration is that of a ceremonial device on a seal by which the nation's decisions are
made known.

Bhimrao Ambedkar, as chairperson of the drafting committee of the Constituent Assembly of

India during various debates about the president being constitutional head of the state.

The primary duty of the President is to preserve, protect and defend the constitution and the
law of India as made part of his oath (Article 60 of Indian constitution). The President is the
common head of all independent constitutional entities. All his actions, recommendations
(Article 3, Article 111, Article 274, etc.) and supervisory powers (Article 74(2), Article 78 c,
Article 108, Article 111, etc.) over the executive and legislative entities of India shall be used
in accordance to uphold the constitution. There is no bar on the actions of the President to
contest in the court of law. The President of India is the Head of State. The system of
government of India is a cabinet form of government. The Indian President is, therefore, a
constitutional head like the King or Queen of Britain—that is, all executive powers are
constitutionally vested in him, although those are actually exercised and executed by the
cabinet. In India the powers of the Union government are treated as the powers of the
President because these powers are used in his name in pursuance of the constitutional
stipulation under Article 53 which reads: The executive powers of the Union shall be vested
in the President and shall be exercised by him either directly or through the officers
subordinate to him in accordance with this Constitution. The constitutional powers and
functions of the President of India may be classified into six principal types.

As we went over the branches of government, we learned that the President is head of the
Executive branch. This role, which gives the president the titles of Chief Administrator, Chief
Legislator, and Chief Executive, allows the president to sign off on and enforce laws for the
country. This is obviously a rather big and important task for just one person, so the president
is allowed to appoint cabinet members to help with signing or vetoing bills, which become
laws! It should be noted that even with these roles, the president is now allowed to write his
own laws, only review ones created by Congress.

Assigning cabinet members is another very important role of the president. The president
must be able to collect a group of like minded individuals who will not allow any faulty bills
to leave the Executive branch. The president must assign 24 people into his Cabinet, and they
are under the same scrutiny that the president is.4

DUTY:
https://www.india.gov.in/my-government/whos-who/president
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The primary duty of the president is to preserve, protect and defend the constitution and the
law of India as made part of their oath (Article 60 of Indian constitution).The president is the
common head of all independent constitutional entities. All their
actions, recommendations (Article 3, Article 111, Article 274, etc.) and supervisory powers
(Article 74(2), Article 78C, Article 108, Article 111, etc.) over the executive and legislative
entities of India shall be used in accordance to uphold the constitution. There is no bar on the
actions of the president to contest in the court of law.

Executive Functions

1. Head of the Union: The President is at the head of the Union Executive. Consequently, all
executive powers are exercised in his name. The executive power of the Union to be
exercised by the President is extended to the matters with respect to which Parliament has
power to make laws and to conclude treaty and agreement.

2. Appointments: As head of the executive, the President appoints the Governors of States,
the Judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts, the Auditor General of India and many
other high officials, such as the members of Finance Commission, Election commission,
Union Public commission etc.

3. Appointment of the Prime Minister and other Ministers: The President also appoints the
Prime Minister and with his advice the other Ministers of the Union Council of Ministers. But
here too, as in all other appointments, the President can seldom use his discretion. He is,
ordinarily, duty-bound to summon the leader of the political party which secures an absolute
majority in the Lok Sabha to become the Prime Minister and form the Ministry. He does
enjoy some discretionary powers in the matter only under exceptional circumstances. When
no single political party wins a clear absolute majority and, as a result, no Council of
Ministers can be formed without a coalition of parties the President can exercise his
discretion judiciously in appointing the Prime Minister. Such situations developed in the
past.India has entered into an age of coalition politics. And it may so happen that no single
party will be able to secure an absolute majority, and the President may be required to
exercise his discretionary power for some time to come, in appointing Prime Minister. 5

https://rashtrapatisachivalaya.gov.in/president%E2%80%99s-secretariat
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4. Can ask to prove Majority in Lok Sabha: Union Council of Ministers normally remains in
office for five years, unless dissolved earlier for any reason. The President must be satisfied
that the Council of Ministers enjoys the confidence of the majority of the Lok Sabha. In case
of any doubt he can ask the Council of Ministers to prove its majority in the Lok Sabha, as
the Prime Ministers Sri H.D. Deve Gowda was asked by the President after the official
withdrawal of support by the Congress Party from Ministry. The President can also dissolve
the Union Council of Ministers in accordance with Article 75(2) of the constitution, if he
finds that the Ministry does not enjoy the support of the majorities in the Lok Sabha.

5. Supreme Commander: As head of State, the President is the supreme Commander of the
Armed Forces of India and is entitled to declare war or conclude a treaty.

Legislative Powers and Functions

1. President is a part of Parliament: The Union Legislature or Parliament consists of the

President and two Houses of Parliament. The President is, therefore, an integral part of Union
Legislature. He shall summon from time to time, either separately or jointly, the Houses of
Parliament. The President can prorogue the Houses or either House of Parliament and, if
necessary, can dissolve the lower Chamber of Parliament, the Lok Sabha. For example, the
President solved the twelfth Lok Sabha in early 1999 when the confidence motion in favour
your of the Vajpayee government was lost in the Lok Sabha.

2. Summons and Addresses Parliament: The President may address either or both House of
Parliament. In such address, at the first session after general election to the Lok Sabha and at
beginning of a joint session of Parliament each year, he may place the reasons for summoning
it. Apart from addressing Parliament, the President may also, in case of necessities, send
messages to either House, or to both Houses [Article 86(2)]. Normally, the President does not
send such a message, unless however, he has a serious disagreement with the Council of
Ministers.

3. Nomination: The President nominates a number of members in both Houses. The chief
purpose of the nomination is to ensure adequate representation in Parliament of all sections of
population which many not always be achieved through elections. 6

https://presidentoffice.gov.dm/presidents-office/7-conclusion
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Power to Promulgate Ordinances:

Except when both Houses of Parliament are in session, the President may promulgate such
Ordinances as the circumstances appear to him to require (Article 123). Such an ordinance
can have the same force and effect of an Act of Parliament. Such an ordinance shall cease to
operate unless passed by both Houses of Parliament within the stipulated period. A.K. Roy
vs. Union of India (1982) illustrates the proposition that the satisfaction of the President must
be as to the existence of a situation which makes it necessary for the President to promulgate
such on Ordinance.

The more controversial and debatable legislative power of the President has always been the
Ordinance Making Power. Usually the power to make the laws rests with the Parliament.
However, special power on the President empowering him to promulgate ordinances when
the Parliament is not in session and the circumstances are such which

The more controversial and debatable legislative power of the President has always been the
Ordinance Making Power. Usually the power to make the laws rests with the Parliament.
However, special power on the President empowering him to promulgate ordinances when
the Parliament is not in session and the circumstances are such which.

Financial Powers and Functions:

The President of India also exercises financial powers. No money bill can be introduced in
Parliament without the recommendations of the President. According to the Constitution of
India, the Annual Financial Statement is placed by the President before both the Houses of
Parliament. This statement shows the estimates of revenue and expenditure of the central
Government for the next year. It may be pointed out that the proposal for taxation and
expenditure cannot be made without the approval of the President. . No proposal for spending
money or raising revenues for purposes of government can be introduced in Parliament
without previous permission of the President.7

Emergency Powers of the President:

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1. The constitution of India empowers the President to proclaim three kinds of Emergencies:
National Emergency (Art. 352);

2. Emergency for failure of Constitutional Machinery in a State (Art. 356);

3. Financial Emergency (Art. 360) 1 National Emergency The President of India may issue a
Proclamation of National Emergency when the security of India or any part thereof is
threatened by war, armed rebellion or external aggression. Such a Proclamation of
Emergency may remain in force for an indefinite period. During a Proclamation of National
Emergency, the executive power of the States is to be exercised in accordance with the
directions given by the Central Government. Parliament has the power to make laws on the
subjects enumerated in the State List. The right to freedom of speech and expression, freedom
to form association, freedom to practice and profession, etc., embodied in Article 19 shall
remain suspended.

DIPLOMATIC POWERS:

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 All international treaties and agreements are negotiated and concluded on behalf of the
President. However, in practice, such negotiations are usually carried out by the Prime
Minister along with his Cabinet (especially the Foreign). Also, such treaties are subject to the
approval of the Parliament. The President represents India in international forums and affairs
where such a function is chiefly ceremonial. The President may also send and receive
diplomats, i.e. the officers from the Indian Foreign Service. The President is the first citizen
of the country. Military powers The President is the Supreme Commander of the Indian
Armed Forces. The President can declare war or conclude peace,[20] on the advice of the
Union Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. All important treaties and
contracts are made in the President's name.[25] He also appoints the chiefs of the service
branches of the armed forces. Pardoning Powers / Judicial Powers The President of India
grants, pardons, reprieves or remissions of punishment to any person who has been convicted
by a Court of Law. As mentioned in Article 72 of the Indian Constitution, the President is
empowered with the powers to grant pardons in the following situations:

 Punishment is for an offence against Union Law 6

 Punishment is by a Military Court

 Sentence is that of death The decisions involving pardoning and other rights by the
President are independent of the opinion of the Prime Minister or the Lok Sabha majority. In
most cases, however, the President exercises his executive powers on the advice of the Prime
Minister and the cabinet.8

file:///C:/Users/HP/Downloads/Powers_and_Functions_of_President_in_India.pdf
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The Presidency is one of the four Organs of the Court. It is composed of the President and
First and Second Vice-Presidents, all of whom are elected by an absolute majority of
the Judges of the Court for a three year renewable term. The judges of the Court have
adopted Guidelines on the Procedure for the Election of the Presidency which entered into
force on 19 January 2021. The judges composing the Presidency serve on a full-time basis.

The Presidency has three main areas of responsibility: judicial/legal functions, administration
and external relations. In the exercise of its judicial/legal functions, the Presidency constitutes
and assigns cases to Chambers, conducts judicial review of certain decisions of the Registrar
and concludes Court-wide cooperation agreements with States. With the exception of the
Office of the Prosecutor, the Presidency is responsible for the proper administration of the
Court and oversees the work of the Registry. The Presidency will coordinate and seek the
concurrence of the Prosecutor on all matters of mutual concern. Among the Presidency's
responsibilities in the area of external relations is to maintain relations with States and other
entities and to promote public awareness and understanding of the Court.

Beyond the Executive branch, the president is also the Chief Diplomat! This role focuses on
the president being a diplomat within other countries and governments. The president must be
able to be poised, polite, and of course diplomatic within this role.

Being the Chief of Party is another responsibility in the hands of the president. This is a
simple role, just a title given to assign the president as the head of their respective party! As
an example, Joe Biden is the Chief of the Democratic Party! And if we have a Republican
president in the future, they would be the Chief of the Republican Party!

The role of Chief of State is integral to the US government’s image in the public eye.
Whenever you see the president rewarding soldiers or civilians with Medals of Honor or
other prestigious rewards is you witnessing the president acting as the Chief of State! Think
of this role as being a title for a figurehead, as that is what the president is when acting as the
Chief of State.

The final role we’ll cover that the president possesses is Chief Citizen. This role is perhaps
the most symbolic of all. As Chief Citizen, the president is meant to act as a representative
for all citizens and to be a model during peaceful times to ensure they last. All of these roles
and responsibilities are surely hard to keep track of! So how do you help your students
understand the importance of the president and President’s Day in general? Well, Twinkl is
here to guide you through with our amazing resources.9

https://blog.ipleaders.in/position-and-powers-of-the-president/
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IMPEACHMENT:
The Supreme Court shall inquire and decide regarding all doubts and disputes arising out of
or in connection with the election of a president per Article 71(1) of the constitution. The
Supreme Court can remove the president for the electoral malpractices or upon being not
eligible to be a member of the Lok Sabha under the Representation of the People Act,
1951. Subject to Article 71 (3), parliament made applicable rules/procedure to petition the
supreme court for resolving the disputes only that arise during the election process of the
president but not the doubts that arise from their unconstitutional actions/deeds or changing
Indian citizenship during the tenure of the president which may violate the requisite election
qualifications.
The president may also be removed before the expiry of the term through impeachment for
violating the Constitution of India by the Parliament of India. The process may start in either
of the two houses of the parliament. The house initiates the process by levelling the charges
against the president. The charges are contained in a notice that has to be signed by at least
one-quarter of the total members of that house. The notice is sent up to the president and 14
days later, it is taken up for consideration.
A resolution to impeach the president has to be passed by a two-thirds majority of the total
number of members of the originating house. It is then sent to the other house. The other
house investigates the charges that have been made. During this process, the president has the
right to defend himself through an authorised counsel. If the second house also approves the
charges made by the special majority again, the president stands impeached and is deemed to
have vacated their office from the date when such a resolution stands passed. No president
has faced impeachment proceedings so the above provisions have never been used.
Under Article 361 of the constitution, though the president cannot be summoned for
questioning except on their voluntary willingness to testify in the court in support of their
controversial deeds, the unconstitutional decisions taken by the president would be declared
invalid by the courts. The case would be decided by the courts based on the facts furnished by
the Union government for the president's role. As clarified by the supreme court in the
case Rameshwar Prasad & Others vs Union of India & An Other on 24 January 2006; though
the president cannot be prosecuted and imprisoned during their term of office, they can be
prosecuted after he/she steps down from the post for any guilt committed during the term of
the presidency as declared earlier by the courts. No president has resigned on impropriety to
continue in office for declaring and nullifying their unconstitutional decisions by the courts
till now. No criminal case at least on the grounds of disrespecting constitution is lodged till
now against former presidents to punish them for their unconstitutional acts; though many
decisions taken during the term of a president have been declared by the supreme court as
unconstitutional, mala fides, void, ultra vires, etc. 10

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https://blog.ipleaders.in/position-and-powers-of-the-president/

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SUCCESSION:

The Office of the president falls vacant in the following scenarios:

1. On the expiry of their term.

2. By reason of death.
3. By reason of resignation.
4. Removal by the supreme court.
5. Removal by impeachment.
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.
A vice-president who acts as or discharges the functions of the president has all the powers
and immunities of the president and is entitled to the same emoluments as the president.
When a vice-president discharges the duties of the president, he/she does not function as the
Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha.
The Indian parliament has enacted the law—The President (Discharge of Functions) Act,
1969 for the discharge of the functions of the president when vacancies occur in the offices of
the president and the vice-president simultaneously, owing to removal, death, resignation of
the incumbent or otherwise. In such an eventuality, the chief justice—or in their absence, the
senior-most judge of the Supreme Court of India available—discharges the functions of the
president until a newly elected president enters upon their office or a newly elected vice-
president begins to act as president under Article 65 of the constitution, whichever is the
earlier.   For example, in 1969, when President Zakir Husain died in Office, Vice-President V.
V. Giri served as the acting president of India. However, later, V.V Giri resigned from both
posts (Acting President of India and Vice-President of India) as he became a candidate in the
1969 presidential election in India. In this event, the then Chief Justice of India,
Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah served as the acting president of India until the next
president was elected.11

IMPORTANT PRESIDENTIAL INTERVENTION IN THE PAST:

11
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The president's role as defender of the constitution and the powers as Head of State,
especially in relation to those exercised by the prime minister as leader of the government,
have changed over time. In particular, Presidents have made a number of interventions into
government and lawmaking, which have established and challenged some conventions
concerning presidential intervention.

Proving majority in the parliament

Main article: Vote of confidence

In 1979, Prime Minister Charan Singh, did not enjoy a parliamentary majority. He responded
to this by simply not advising the president to summon parliament.[21] Since then, presidents
have been more diligent in directing incoming Prime Ministers to convene parliament and
prove their majority within reasonable deadlines (2 to 3 weeks). In the interim period, the
Prime Ministers are generally restrained from making policy decisions.

Proof of Majority to form a Government

Since the 1990s, Parliamentary elections have generally not resulted in a single party or
group of parties having a distinct majority, until the 2014 Lok Sabha elections when BJP
received a clear majority. In such cases, presidents have used their discretion and directed
Prime Ministerial aspirants to establish their credentials before being invited to form the
government. Typically, the aspirants have been asked to produce letters from various party
leaders, with the signatures of all the MPs who are pledging support to their candidature. This
is in addition to the requirement that a prime minister proves he has the support of the Lok
Sabha (by a vote on the floor of the house) within weeks of being sworn into office.[62][63]

Vetoing of a Bill
Since the Indian constitution does not provide any time limit within which the president is to
declare their assent or refusal, the president could exercise a "pocket veto" by not taking any
action for an indefinite time. The veto was used in 1986 by President Zail Singh over the
Postal Bill. The president did not give assent to the bill, arguing that its scope was too
sweeping and would give the government arbitrary powers to intercept postal
communications indiscriminately.[58][64][65]

Rashtrapati Bhavan Communiqués

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In the late 1990s, President K. R. Narayanan introduced a modicum of transparency and
openness in the functioning of the President. This was by means of Rashtrapati Bhavan
Communiqués explaining, to the nation, the thinking that led to the various decisions he took
while exercising their discretionary powers.
Return of a Bill
The constitution gives the president the power to return a bill unsigned but it circumscribes
the power to send it back only once for reconsideration. If the parliament sends back the bill
with or without changes, the president is obliged to sign it. In mid-2006, President A. P. J.
Abdul Kalam sent back a controversial bill regarding the exclusion of certain offices from the
scope of 'offices of profit', the holding of which would disqualify a person from being a
member of parliament. The combined opposition, the NDA, hailed the move. The UPA chose
to send the bill back to the president without any changes and, after 17 days, Kalam gave his
assent on 18 August 2006.
Sacking state governors
Arunachal Pradesh governor Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa, who was earlier appointed by the ruling
party at the centre, was sacked by President Pranab Mukherjee after the Supreme Court
struck down his unconstitutional acts

List of Indian Presidents (1950-2022)

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The Constitution of India was adopted on 26th November 1949 (It came into force on 26th
January 1950) and Dr Rajendra Prasad was elected as the first constitutional head of the state,
the President of India. 
Ram Nath Kovind, the 14th President of India, completed his term in July 2022. Though he
was eligible, he did not contest for re-election. As a result, Draupadi Murmu in July 2022,
became the 15th Indian President, appointed by the electoral college.

Name Tenure Description

Rajendra Prasad 13 May 1952 – 13  He was elected twice as the president

May 1957  He was also the president of the constituent
assembly before being elected for this post.
13 May 1957 – 13
May 1962

Sarvepalli 13 May 1962 – 13  Radhakrishnan was a prominent philosopher

Radhakrishnan May 1967 and writer.
 He also held the position of vice-chancellor
of the Andhra University and Banaras Hindu
University.

Zakir Hussain 13 May 1967 – 3  He was the recipient of Padma Vibhushan

May 1969 and Bharat Ratna.
 He was the shortest-serving president and
passed away in office.

Varahagiri Venkata 3 May 1969 – 20  He was elected Vice President of India in

Giri July 1969 1967.
 He served as the president for a short term
24 August 1969 –
due to the sudden death of Zakir Hussain in
24 August 1974
office.

Fakhruddin Ali 24 August 1974 –  He was the president during Emergency.

Ahmed 11 February 1977  He was the second president who died in
office.

Neelam Sanjiva 25 July 1977 – 25  He was the first Chief Minister of Andhra
Reddy July 1982 Pradesh.
 He became the youngest President who
occupied Rashtrapati Bhavan and contested
twice for the post of president.

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Zail Singh 25 July 1982 – 25  He was the Chief Minister of Punjab and the
July 1987 Union Home Minister

Ramaswamy 25 July 1987 – 25  He is a receiver of “Tamra Patra” for his

Venkataraman July 1992 contributions to India’s freedom struggle.

Shankar Dayal 25 July 1992 – 25  He was Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh

Sharma July 1997 and the Indian Minister for Communications.

Kocheril Raman 25 July 1997 – 25  He served as India’s ambassador to Thailand,

Narayanan July 2002 Turkey, China and the United States of
America.

Avul Pakir 25 July 2002 – 25  He played a leading role in the development

Jainulabdeen Abdul July 2007 of India’s ballistic missile and nuclear
Kalam weapons programs.
 He was also a Bharat Ratna recipient.

Pratibha Patil 25 July 2007 – 25  She was the first woman president of India.
July 2012

Pranab Mukherjee 25 July – 25 July  He was awarded the best Parliamentary

2017 Award in 1997.
 He also received Padma Vibhushan in 2008

Ram Nath Kovind 25 July 2017 – 25  He served as the Governor of Bihar.

July 2022

Draupadi Murmu 25 July 2022 –  She has served as the governor of Jharkhand
Incumbent previously.

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WHAT’S THE TENURE OF THE PRESIDENT

The person after being elected takes charge of the office of President. Article 56 provides the
provision regarding tenure or the term of the President. According to this Article, the
President holds his office for a period of 5 years from the date of entering the office. The
President can continue to hold his office even after the end of five years till the time the next
elected person takes charge of the office.

A person who has been elected President once can also be re-elected and therefore the tenure
of the President can be more than 5 years if he is re-elected.(Article 57)

A President also has the option of resigning from his office even before his term ends. He can
resign by writing his intention to the Vice President.

WHAT’S THE MEANING OF IMPEACHMENT?

Article 61 provides the provision of impeachment of the President. It means that the President
can be removed from his post even before the expiry of his term and this can be done in cases
where he violates the Constitution.

For impeaching a President, a charge can be brought up in either Houses of Parliament and it
should be presented in the form of a proposal which is to be signed by at least 1/4th of the
total members of the house. After the proposal is made, the House votes on it and if it is
passed by a 2/3rd majority the other House starts an investigation regarding the violation. If
after the investigation, the house passes the proposal with a 2/3rd majority then it will lead to
the impeachment of the President which means he/she will have to leave his office.12

12
file:///C:/Users/HP/Downloads/Powers_and_Functions_of_President_in_India.pdf

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POWERS TO MAKE APPOINTMENTS:

The President has the power to appoint many constitutional officers and the members of the
Union Government. They include:

The Prime Minister

Chief Justice of India

Attorney General of India

Comptroller and Auditor General of India

Governors of States

Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission

Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners

Administrators of Union Territories

13

13
file:///C:/Users/HP/Downloads/Powers_and_Functions_of_President_in_India.pdf

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CONCLUSION:
In India, the President is called the Executive head but he is only a titular head. Even though
the President is given many powers, many of them are not very effective for e.g. even if the
president sends a bill back to the Houses of Parliament for some modifications, the
Parliament can resend it without any modifications and the President is bound to give his
assent.

Also, all the Government Contracts made by the Union are made in the name of the President
and in the absence of this requirement being fulfilled, a Government contract cannot be
regarded as valid.

Also, the President does not play an active role in the affairs of the State and the real
Executive power is vested in the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. So, the
Prime Minister is the real head of the state and the President is the head only in name.

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WEBILOGRAPHY:

https://blog.ipleaders.in/position-and-powers-of-the-president/

file:///C:/Users/HP/Downloads/Powers_and_Functions_of_President_in_India.pdf

https://www.google.com/search?q=president+of+india+conclusion&rlz=1C1SQJL_enIN891I

https://presidentoffice.gov.dm/presidents-office/7-conclusion

https://www.google.com/search?
q=president+of+india&rlz=1C1SQJL_enIN891IN904&oq=PRES&aqs=chrome.1.69i59l2j69i
57j0i433i512j0i512j0i433i512j0i131i433i650j0i131i433i512j46i175i199i512j0i131i433i512.
3486j0j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

https://rashtrapatisachivalaya.gov.in/president%E2%80%99s-secretariat

https://www.india.gov.in/my-government/whos-who/president

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_India

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