All you need to know about Droupadi Murmu, 15th President of India

Kovind’s tenure ends on 24 July and the new president will take oath on 25 July.

The process of counting the votes started today at 11 am in room number 63 in Parliament House, where the ballot boxes brought from all the state assemblies were kept.

NDA’s Murmu and Opposition’s Sinha were in the fray to become the country’s 15th president.

Everything you need to know about Droupadi Murmu:

Murmu, the tribal leader from Odisha and former governor of Jharkhand, had filed her nomination last month with Prime Minister Narendra Modi handing over her papers to Returning Officer PC Mody.

She will be the first woman from the tribal community to occupy the country’s top constitutional post.

Soon after Murmu was named as the BJP-led NDA’s presidential candidate, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said she has devoted her life to serving society and expressed confidence that she will be a “great President”.

“Droupadi Murmu Ji has devoted her life to serving society and empowering the poor, downtrodden as well as the marginalised. She has rich administrative experience and had an outstanding gubernatorial tenure. I am confident she will be a great President of our nation,” the prime minister said.

“Millions of people, especially those who have experienced poverty and faced hardships, derive great strength from the life of Smt. Droupadi Murmu Ji. Her understanding of policy matters and compassionate nature will greatly benefit our country,” PM Modi tweeted.

Considered a soft-spoken and affable leader who comes from Mayurbhanj, one of the more backward regions of Odisha, Murmu has held various positions in the party rising through the ranks and was a minister in the state when the BJP was in alliance with the ruling Biju Janata Dal.

Known for taking decisions with an eye on the larger political message, the BJP is hopeful that Murmu’s candidature will help its reach among tribals not only in her home state but also across the country as it has continuously strived to woo various disadvantaged communities to good political results.

She will be the first President, if elected, born after independence. Modi has often spoken about being the first Prime Minister born after India gained freedom and used the plank to reach out to the masses.

She is likely to draw support from several non-NDA regional parties, including Odisha’s ruling BJD, and even an opposition party like Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, which is in power in Jharkhand with the Congress, may find it hard to oppose her as the party identifies itself the cause of tribals.

With agency inputs

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