From The ¡®People¡¯s President¡¯ To The One Who Was A ¡®Teacher Philosopher¡¯, Here Are The Great Presidents Of India

With presidential elections scheduled to take place on July 17th, the President House at Raisena hill, one of the biggest residences for the heads of the state across the world, is all set to welcome its new incumbent.

Right from the first president Dr Rajendra Prasad till Pranab Mukherjee, India has seen some remarkable presidents who were virtuosos in respective fields and set precedents for the incumbents who followed them.

AP

Whether it¡¯s the philosopher President Dr Radhakrishnan, or an avid educationist Dr Zakir Hussian or the ¡®people¡¯s president¡¯ and Mr Simplicity, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, the Raisena Hill has housed some of most intellectually finest brains ever produced in India.

Here we are discussing India¡¯s greatest Presidents and their unique qualities which made them India¡¯s greatest presidents.

1. Dr Rajendra Prasad (01/26/50 to 05/13/62)

A freedom fighter from Bihar who saw country breaking the shackles of the British imperial slavery, Dr Rajendra Prasad was the first as well as longest serving president of India. Dr Prasad was known as political acumen and was a great humanist and the evidence of this can be seen the number of mercy petitions he accepted. Dr Prasad accepted 180 out of the 181 mercy petitions and commuted the death sentences awarded by the court of law. He was awarded Bharat Ratna in 1962.

2. Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (05/13/62 to 05/13/67)

Before he became president, Dr S Radhakrishnan served for ten years as Vice President. Dr Radhakrishnan was perhaps the most educated president India has ever seen as he not only held prestigious positions such as Chancellor of BHU and Andhra University but also served at King George V Chair of Mental and Moral Science at the University of Calcutta (1921¨C1932) and Spalding Professor of Eastern Religion and Ethics at University of Oxford (1936¨C1952).

After Swami Vivekananda who delivered a lecture in heart of western world in Chicago in 1893, Dr Radhakrishan became the second philosopher who connected the philosophies of the east and west which to many are like two parallel worlds.

, ¡°It is an honour to the philosophy that Dr Radhakrishnan should be President of India and I, as a philosopher, take special pleasure in this. Plato aspired for philosophers to become kings and it is a tribute to India that she should make a philosopher her President,¡± famous philosopher Bertrand Russell on his appointment as President.

As a president, he denounced the capital punishment and accepted all the 57 mercy petitions he received. September 5 is his birthday and it¡¯s celebrated as ¡®Teacher¡¯s Day¡¯ because that¡¯s what he was throughout his life- a teacher.

Dr Zakir Hussain (05/13/67 to 05/03/69)

The first Muslim President of India, Dr Zakir Hussain was an educationist. He served as the Vice Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University and was also one of the founding members of Jamia Milia Islamia. He was the first president who died in office. He was given Bharat Ratna in 1963.

Dr KR Narayanan (07/25/97 to 07/25/02)

First dalit President of India, Dr KR Narayanan was a journalist who served with papers like The Hindu and The Times of India. Narayanan studied Political Science under Harold Laski at London School of Economics and joined Indian Foreign Services (IFS) in 1949. He was known as a ¡®working president¡¯ who believed in the ¡®rule of law¡¯.

Dr APJ Abdul Kalam (07/25/02 to 07/25/07)

They call him ¡®The People¡¯s President¡¯, the man of dignity and honour. A scientist who added teeth to India¡¯s missile arsenal, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam¡¯s contribution to India as a scientist and later as president is somewhat unparallel.

President Kalam was awarded Bharat Ratna in 1998 for his great contribution in India nuclear and missile program. 2,500 books, a wrist watch, six shirts, four trousers, three suits and a pair of shoes- that¡¯s was the sum total of man¡¯s possession who served India without desiring anything for himself. After his tenure got over, the government had allotted him a bungalow at Rajaji Marg which now languish in shambles after his death, but the tales of dignity are still alive and will continue to inspire us and our generations.

5. Pranab Mukherjee (7/5/12 onwards)

Known for his political acumen, Pranab Mukherjee known Pranab Da is perhaps the only president who missed on being the Prime Minister of the country by a whisker. Pranab Mukherjee who served at different portfolios is the only Indian politician who held three portfolios, minister of defence, minister of finance and minister of external affairs. The political acumen is believed to be as good as Indira Gandhi and her father Jawahar Lal Nehru. He is the current departing president.