104th Birth Anniversary of Dr Shanker Dayal Sharma | 20 Aug 2025

Why in News?

On the occasion of Dr. Shanker Dayal Sharma's 104th birth anniversary, the ninth President of India (served from 25th July 1992 to 25th July 1997), President Droupadi Murmu paid floral tributes at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Key Facts About Dr Shanker Dayal Sharma

About: Dr Shanker Dayal Sharma, born on 19th August 1918 (Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh), was an esteemed lawyer, politician, and the President of India.
- He played a crucial role in India’s independence struggle and made significant contributions in various political capacities.
Education: Dr Sharma pursued his higher education at Agra and Lucknow Universities.
- After obtaining a doctorate in law from Cambridge University, he attended Lincoln’s Inn in London and Harvard University.
- He began his legal practice in 1940 in Lucknow.
Literary Work: He was also a noted poet and writer. He authored several books and edited prestigious publications such as the Lucknow Law Journal (1941-43) and Socialist India (1971-74).
Political Journey: He became a member of the erstwhile Bhopal Legislative Assembly from 1952 to 1956 and went on to serve as the youngest Chief Minister of the state.
- He was re-elected to the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly from 1956 to 1971 and also served as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, and Maharashtra.
- In 1971, he was elected to the Lok Sabha and served as the Minister of Communications from 1974 to 1977.
Vice-Presidency and Presidency: In 1984, Dr. Sharma was elected as the eighth Vice President of India, serving in that role for two terms until he was elected as the President of India in 1992.
- In October 2000, President Shri K.R. Narayanan released a special commemorative postage stamp in honor of Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma.
Death: Dr Shanker Dayal Sharma passed away on 26th December 1999, following a massive heart attack.

Some Facts About the Office of the President of India

Two Terms: The only President of India to have served two terms is Dr. Rajendra Prasad.
Presidential Deaths: So far, two Presidents, Dr. Zakir Hussain and Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, have passed away during their term in office.
Acting President: When Dr. Zakir Hussain passed away in May 1969, the then Vice-President, V.V. Giri became the acting President.
- Following this, V.V. Giri resigned to contest the presidential election.
CJI as Acting President: After V.V. Giri's resignation, Chief Justice M. Hidayatullah served as the officiating President from 20th July 1969 to 24th August 1969.

Note: Justice Hidayatullah is the only person in Indian history to have served in all three highest constitutional offices: Chief Justice of India, Acting President and Vice President.

Presidents of India (1950-2025)

S.No.	Name	Term Start	Term End	Duration	Key Details
1	Dr. Rajendra Prasad	26th January 1950	13th May 1962	12 years, 107 days	First President of India; Only President to serve two terms
2	Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan	13th May 1962	13th May 1967	5 years	Philosopher-President; Teacher's Day celebrated on his birthday
3	Dr. Zakir Husain	13th May 1967	3rd May 1969	1 year, 355 days	First Muslim President; Died in office
Acting	V.V. Giri	3rd May 1969	20th July 1969	78 days	Acting President after Zakir Husain's death
Acting	Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah	20th July 1969	24th August 1969	35 days	CJI acted as President; V.V. Giri resigned to contest election
4	V.V. Giri	24th August 1969	24th August 1974	5 years	Won as independent candidate against official Congress nominee
5	Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed	24th August 1974	11th February 1977	2 years, 171 days	Died in office during Emergency period
Acting	B.D. Jatti	11th February 1977	25th July 1977	164 days	Acting President; Former Chief Minister of Karnataka
6	Neelam Sanjiva Reddy	25th July 1977	25th July 1982	5 years	First President elected unopposed
7	Giani Zail Singh	25th July 1982	25th July 1987	5 years	First Sikh President
8	R. Venkataraman	25th July 1987	25th July 1992	5 years	Former Vice President and Defence Minister
9	Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma	25th July 1992	25th July 1997	5 years	Former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh
10	K.R. Narayanan	25th July 1997	25th July 2002	5 years	First Dalit President; Career diplomat
11	Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam	25th July 2002	25th July 2007	5 years	"People's President"; Missile Man of India
12	Pratibha Patil	25th July 2007	25th July 2012	5 years	First Woman President of India
13	Pranab Mukherjee	25th July 2012	25th July 2017	5 years	Veteran politician; Former Finance Minister
14	Ram Nath Kovind	25th July 2017	25th July 2022	5 years	Second Dalit President; Former Governor of Bihar
15	Droupadi Murmu	25th July 2022	Current	3+ years	Current President; First tribal woman President