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Question 57 of 78 · Union Executive: President, VP & PM
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The former President of India who had earlier served as Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha was:

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Answer: Option B — Pratibha Patil

Detailed Solution

Pratibha Devisingh Patil served as Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha from 1986 to 1988, and later became the first woman President of India, from 2007 to 2012.

Early life:

  • She was born on 19 December 1934 at Nadgaon in Jalgaon district of Maharashtra.
  • She studied law and practised as a lawyer before entering politics.

Political career:

  • She was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in 1962 and served several terms.
  • She held various ministerial posts in the Maharashtra government, including Education, Social Welfare and Tourism.
  • She was a member of the Rajya Sabha from 1985 to 1990 and was its Deputy Chairperson.
  • She was elected to the Lok Sabha from Amravati in 1991.
  • She served as Governor of Rajasthan from 2004 to 2007, the first woman to hold that post.

As President:

  • She was elected in July 2007, defeating Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.
  • During her term, she focused on issues such as women's empowerment, education and agriculture.
  • She became the first woman President to fly in a Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter aircraft.

Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha:

  • The Deputy Chairperson is elected by the members of the Rajya Sabha from among themselves.
  • He or she presides over the House when the Chairman, who is the Vice-President, is absent.
  • Other notable Deputy Chairpersons include Violet Alva (the first woman to hold the post), Najma Heptulla and Harivansh.

Other Presidents with legislative experience:

  • Neelam Sanjiva Reddy had been Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
  • Several Presidents had been Vice-Presidents and thus Chairmen of the Rajya Sabha.

Women in high constitutional offices:

Droupadi Murmu became the second woman President in 2022 and the first from a Scheduled Tribe.

Why not the other options?

K.R. Narayanan had been Vice-President and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, not Deputy Chairperson.

Ram Nath Kovind had been a member of the Rajya Sabha and Governor of Bihar.

Droupadi Murmu had been Governor of Jharkhand.

Quick tip

Remember: Pratibha Patil = Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha (1986 to 1988) and first woman President (2007 to 2012).

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Union Executive: President, VP & PM — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Union Executive: President, VP & PM, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.

This topic covers the Union Executive: the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers, and the Attorney General. It includes their election or appointment, qualifications, powers, removal, and the relationship between the President and the Council of Ministers. Common questions cover the electoral college that elects the President, impeachment under Article 61, the President's ordinance-making power (Article 123) and pardoning power (Article 72), and the fact that the Vice-President is the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. Lists of past Presidents and Prime Ministers are also tested. Practise the Union Executive questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.

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