Indian Presidents
Key Concepts
| # | Concept | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | First President | Dr. Rajendra Prasad – only President to serve two full terms (1950-62) |
| 2 | Only Acting President | Mohammad Hidayatullah – acted for 35 days in 1969 when VP became Acting President |
| 3 | Youngest President | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy – 64 yrs; also elected un-opposed (1977) |
| 4 | Oldest President | Ram Nath Kovind – 71 yrs at swearing-in |
| 5 | First Woman President | Pratibha Patil – 25 July 2007 to 25 July 2012 |
| 6 | Longest & Shortest Tenure | Longest: Rajendra Prasad (12 yrs); Shortest: Zakir Husain (1 yr 355 days) |
| 7 | Presidents who died in Office | Zakir Husain (1969), Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (1977) |
| 8 | Impeachment | Needs 1/4 MPs to initiate, 2/3 of total membership of each House to pass |
15 Practice MCQs
1. Who was the first President of the Republic of India?
A) C. Rajagopalachari B) Dr. S. Radhakrishnan C) Dr. Rajendra Prasad D) Lord Mountbatten **Answer: C** **Solution:** Dr. Rajendra Prasad took oath on 26 Jan 1950. **Shortcut:** “First President = First Republic Day” **Tag:** #FirstPresident #Basic2. Which President served two consecutive full terms?
A) V. V. Giri B) Dr. Rajendra Prasad C) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy D) Pranab Mukherjee **Answer: B** **Solution:** 1950-1957 and 1957-1962. **Shortcut:** “RP-2” (Rajendra Prasad = 2 terms) **Tag:** #Tenure3. Who was the first President to die in office?
A) Zakir Husain B) Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed C) V. V. Giri D) Mohammad Hidayatullah **Answer: A** **Solution:** Passed away on 3 May 1969. **Shortcut:** “ZH-1969” (Zakir Husain dies → 1969) **Tag:** #DeathInOffice4. The only President elected un-opposed so far is ___.
A) Pratibha Patil B) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy C) Ramaswamy Venkataraman D) Pranab Mukherjee **Answer: B** **Solution:** 1977 election; no other candidate filed papers. **Shortcut:** “NSR → No Supporters Required (opposition)” **Tag:** #Election5. Who was the first woman President of India?
A) Indira Gandhi B) Pratibha Patil C) Sonia Gandhi D) Meira Kumar **Answer: B** **Solution:** 25 July 2007. **Shortcut:** “PP-07” (Patil-Pratibha-2007) **Tag:** #WomanPresident6. Match: (a) Youngest (b) Oldest (c) Longest tenure (d) Shortest tenure
A) Reddy, Kovind, Prasad, Husain B) Husain, Patil, Giri, Reddy C) Reddy, Kalam, Giri, Ahmed D) Ahmed, Mukherjee, Prasad, Patil **Answer: A** **Solution:** Neelam Reddy (64), Kovind (71), Prasad (12 yrs), Husain (<2 yrs). **Shortcut:** “Age & Years → Alphabetic order helps recall” **Tag:** #Comparison7. The President who was formerly Chief Justice of India?
A) Mohammad Hidayatullah B) R. Venkataraman C) Shankar Dayal Sharma D) K. R. Narayanan **Answer: A** **Solution:** 11th CJI (1968-70); later became VP and Acting President. **Shortcut:** “MH → Men in High posts (CJI, VP, President)” **Tag:** #Profile8. Which President was also Vice-President before becoming President?
A) Dr. Zakir Husain B) V. V. Giri C) Both A & B D) Neither A nor B **Answer: C** **Solution:** Zakir Husain (VP 1962-67), V. V. Giri (VP 1967-69). **Shortcut:** “Z & G → VP first” **Tag:** #CareerPath9. Article of Constitution dealing with impeachment of the President?
A) 52 B) 61 C) 74 D) 356 **Answer: B** **Solution:** Article 61 – Procedure for impeachment. **Shortcut:** “61 → Remove 1” **Tag:** #Articles10. Who acts as President when both President & Vice-President posts are vacant?
A) Prime Minister B) Chief Justice of India C) Speaker of Lok Sabha D) Attorney General **Answer: B** **Solution:** CJI acts under President (Discharge of Functions) Act, 1969. **Shortcut:** “Top Judge → Top Job (temporary)” **Tag:** #ActingPresident11. The Presidential election is held in accordance with which system?
A) First-past-the-post B) Proportional representation by single transferable vote C) List system D) Direct popular vote **Answer: B** **Solution:** Art. 55 – Indirect election with STV. **Shortcut:** “PR-STV → President” **Tag:** #ElectionSystem12. Who administers oath to the President-elect?
A) Prime Minister B) Outgoing President C) Chief Justice of India D) Vice-President **Answer: C** **Solution:** Art. 60 – Oath by CJI or senior-most judge available. **Shortcut:** “CJI → Chief Justice gives Chief oath” **Tag:** #Oath13. The only President to have worked earlier as Speaker of Lok Sabha?
A) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy B) K. R. Narayanan C) Pranab Mukherjee D) Ramaswamy Venkataraman **Answer: A** **Solution:** Speaker 1967-69; President 1977-82. **Shortcut:** “NSR → Speaker-to-Rashtrapati” **Tag:** #Profile14. Which President signed the proclamation of National Emergency (1975)?
A) V. V. Giri B) Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed C) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy D) Zail Singh **Answer: B** **Solution:** Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed signed on 25 June 1975. **Shortcut:** “FAA-75 (Flight Emergency 75)” **Tag:** #Emergency15. Match the President to State: (1) Pranab Mukherjee (2) Pratibha Patil (3) Ram Nath Kovind (4) A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
A) WB, MH, UP, TN B) MH, WB, UP, TN C) WB, MH, BR, TN D) MH, WB, BR, TN **Answer: C** **Solution:** Pranab (WB), Patil (MH), Kovind (UP→BR), Kalam (TN). **Shortcut:** “West-Maha-Bihar-TN (alphabet of states)” **Tag:** #HomeStateSpeed Tricks
| Situation | Shortcut | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Remember Tenure order | “R-S-R-G-H-G-A-R-V-S-N-K-P-K” (initials) | Rajendra, Radhakrishnan, Rajendra, Giri, Husain, Giri, Ahmed, Reddy, Venkat, Sharma, Narayan, Kalam, Patil, Mukherjee, Kovind |
| Two-term President | Think “Republic Day 1950 & 1957” | Only RP |
| Presidents died in office | “Z-F” (Zakir-Fakhr) | 1969 & 1977 |
| Un-opposed election | “Reddy-Ready” | 1977 |
| CJI → President | “MH” | Mohammad Hidayatullah |
Quick Revision
| Point | Detail |
|---|---|
| 1 | Election: Electoral college = Elected MPs + MLAs; STV system |
| 2 | Qualification: ≥35 yrs, Indian citizen, qualified for Lok Sabha |
| 3 | Term: 5 yrs; can be re-elected |
| 4 | Impeachment: Charge must be for “violation of the Constitution” |
| 5 | Salary: ₹5 lakh/month + allowances (current) |
| 6 | Resign: To Vice-President; office falls vacant forthwith |
| 7 | Acting order: VP → CJI → Senior-most judge (if both vacant) |
| 8 | Pension: ₹2.5 lakh/month + perks for life |
| 9 | Official residence: Rashtrapati Bhavan, 340-room estate |
| 10 | Retirement post: Former Presidents eligible for government bungalow & staff for life |
BETA
