Dr. Kalam was declared the 11th President of India on 18th July, 2002. He had won the presidential election held on 15th July 2002 with an electoral vote of 922,884. His nearest rival Lakshmi Sahgal won 107,366 votes.
After his massive victory, Dr. Kalam was sworn in as the president on 25th July. He was the third President of India to have been honoured with a Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour, before becoming the president. Dr. S. Radhakrishnan (1954) and Zakir Hussain (1963) were his two predecessors who had become president after receiving the Bharat Ratna.
Dr. Kalam was the first scientist and the first bachelor to occupy the Rashtrapati Bhawan. He was referred to as the people’s president with love, as he had done countless deeds for the welfare of the people and the country.
He was brave and courageous enough to prioritise progress and took some decisions which were sometimes controversial. One of them was his so-called ‘inaction’ in deciding the fate of 20 out of the 21 mercy petitions submitted to him during his tenure. President’s rule in Bihar in 2005 during his tenure was also controversial. Despite all this however, he received immense recognition due to his stance and his works.
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