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Rajendra Prasad

Rajendra Prasad (Indian President), signed image for Walter Nash (NZ Prime Minister), 1958 (16017609534)
Rajendra Prasad (Indian President), signed image for Walter Nash (NZ Prime Minister), 1958 (16017609534) Image: Wikimedia Commons. Archives New Zealand from New Zealand / CC BY-SA 2.0

Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, journalist and scholar who served as the first President of India from 1950 to 1962. A leading figure of the Indian independence movement from Bihar, he was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi and presided over the Constituent Assembly that drafted the Constitution of India. He remains the only person to have been elected to two full terms as President of India.

Key facts

Full name Rajendra Prasad
Born 3 December 1884
Died 28 February 1963
Profession Politician, lawyer, journalist, scholar
Political party Indian National Congress
Region Bihar
Office 1st President of India (1950–1962)
Earlier office 1st Minister of Food and Agriculture (1947–1948)
Other role President of the Constituent Assembly of India

Background

Prasad trained as a lawyer and worked as a journalist and scholar before entering full-time politics. He joined the Indian National Congress during the freedom struggle and emerged as one of its principal leaders from Bihar. As a follower of Mahatma Gandhi, he embraced the methods of non-violent civil disobedience that came to define the Congress-led movement.

Role in the independence movement

Prasad was imprisoned by the British authorities during the Salt Satyagraha of 1930 and again during the Quit India movement of 1942. His standing within the Congress grew steadily, and following the Constituent Assembly elections of 1946 he took up senior responsibilities in the emerging national government.

In independent India

After India's independence in 1947, Prasad served as the first Minister of Food and Agriculture in the central government from 1947 to 1948. He was elected President of the Constituent Assembly of India, the body that framed the Constitution of India and also functioned as the provisional Parliament.

Presidency (1950–1962)

When India became a republic on 26 January 1950, Prasad was elected as its first President by the Constituent Assembly. He was re-elected in 1957, making him the only President of India to have served two full terms, with a continuous tenure of about twelve years.

As President, Prasad established a tradition of non-partisanship and independence for the office, retiring from active Congress party politics on assuming the presidency. Although the position was a ceremonial one, he took an active interest in the development of education in India and offered advice to the government on several occasions.

Timeline

  • 1884: Born on 3 December.
  • 1930: Imprisoned during the Salt Satyagraha.
  • 1942: Imprisoned during the Quit India movement.
  • 1946: Elected to the Constituent Assembly; later became its President.
  • 1947–1948: Served as the first Minister of Food and Agriculture.
  • 1950: Elected as the first President of India.
  • 1957: Re-elected to a second term as President.
  • 1962: Completed his presidency; subsequently left the Congress party.
  • 1963: Died on 28 February.

Later life and legacy

After the completion of his presidential tenure, Prasad quit the Congress party and helped set down new guidelines for parliamentarians, conventions that have continued to be followed. His tenure shaped the conduct expected of the Indian head of state and contributed to the institutional traditions of the office of the President of India.

References

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