Forged in fire! Droupadi Murmu, champion of social change, is the 15th President-elect of India

Droupadi Murmu, the 64-year-old native of Santhal in Odisha, has created history after she was declared the 15th President of India. Murmu also holds the distinction of being the first tribal woman to become the president of the world’s largest democracy.

Murmu contested against the Opposition's presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha. As many as 74 per cent of MPs and 73 per cent of MLAs voted for Murmu. This is so far the highest per cent of votes for a presidential election in India.

As many as 34 parties had announced their support for Yashwant Sinha, while 44 parties declared support for Murmu. Incidentally, this is the first time that numerous MLAs have admitted to cross-voting in favour of the NDA presidential candidate.


After the victory, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Murmu at her temporary residence in New Delhi’s Teen Murti Marg. The BJP has planned to carry out a massive victory procession to celebrate the announcement.

Meanwhile, Uparbeda in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj where Murmu was born, has been gripped in revelry. Reportedly, the villagers are also planning to celebrate the day as ‘Vijay Diwas’. Ahead of the announcement, the streets in the tribal village were cleaned and houses were decked up with lights and flowers. Farmers from the village took a day off to celebrate the occasion.

The Governor of Jharkhand who earned the presidential nomination from the ruling National Democratic Alliance had also received a personal endorsement from PM Modi.

Ever since she was declared the presidential nominee, the 64-year-old has been seen at numerous events hosted by NDA and its allies. The former Minister of State for Odisha, Murmu comes with an array of experiences in public and political life. She has been working towards uplifting those from the financially and socially weaker sections of the society.

Murmu had revealed in an old interview that she came from abject poverty and that she never expected to embark on a political career. As a youth, Murmu wanted to complete her academics and get a regular job to support her family. However, owing to a string of incidents led to her quitting her job.

From Teaching To Bringing Social Change
Murmu, whose personal life was marred by successive personal tragedies, started as a school teacher. When her children were young, Murmu took up a voluntary teaching job at a public school. She later moved on to social organisations that worked towards empowering those from the remotest parts of the state.

India’s new President had defied cultural norms to serve the people of her state. She said that those who were impressed with her work for the poor, motivated her to take up full-time social work. She eventually became an MLA and later a minister. Murmu was elected as BJP MLA in 2000 from Rairangpur and in 2009 from Mayurbhanj. She was in the presidential race in 2017. She was also the Minister for Commerce and Transport and Fisheries and Animal Husbandry during the BJP-BJD coalition in Odisha.

In 2015, Murmu became the first woman Governor of Jharkhand. The reticent leader lost her husband Shyam Charan Murmu and her two sons. Despite personal setbacks, Murmu continued her work towards social change.