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Who was the 8th President of India, holding office from 1987 to 1992?
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Answer: Option A — R. Venkataraman
Detailed Solution
Venkataraman. Ramaswamy Venkataraman was the 8th President of India, serving from 25 July 1987 to 25 July 1992.
Early life:
- He was born on 4 December 1910 in Rajamadam village, Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu.
- He studied law and practised in the Madras High Court and the Supreme Court.
Freedom struggle:
He joined the freedom movement and was detained during the Quit India Movement of 1942.
Political career:
He was a member of the Provisional Parliament (1950 to 1952) and was elected to the Lok Sabha.
He served as a minister in the Madras state government under K. Kamaraj, handling industries and labour.
He was a member of the Planning Commission.
In the Union Government, he served as Finance Minister (1980 to 1982) and Defence Minister (1982 to 1984).
He was the 7th Vice-President of India from 1984 to 1987.
As President:
He worked with four Prime Ministers: Rajiv Gandhi, V.P. Singh, Chandra Shekhar and P.V. Narasimha Rao. This was a period of political instability and coalition governments.
He followed the convention of inviting the leader of the largest party or group to form the government.
He wrote a memoir titled "My Presidential Years".
Death:
He died on 27 January 2009 in New Delhi.
Presidents around his term:
- 6th: Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (1977 to 1982), the only President elected unopposed.
- 7th: Giani Zail Singh (1982 to 1987).
8th: R. Venkataraman (1987 to 1992).
9th: Shankar Dayal Sharma (1992 to 1997).
10th: K.R. Narayanan (1997 to 2002), the first Dalit President.
Vice-Presidents who became President:
- Radhakrishnan, Zakir Husain, V.V. Giri, R. Venkataraman, Shankar Dayal Sharma and K.R. Narayanan were Vice-Presidents before becoming President.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Giani Zail Singh was the 7th President.
- ✗Shankar Dayal Sharma was the 9th President.
- ✗Neelam Sanjiva Reddy was the 6th President.
Quick tip
Remember: 7th Zail Singh, 8th R. Venkataraman (1987 to 1992), 9th Shankar Dayal Sharma, 10th K.R. Narayanan.
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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.