Biography Of Draupadi Murmu
| Name | Draupadi Murmu |
| Constituency | Rairangpur |
| Reservations Type Thirteen assembly | Schedule tribe 15/05/2004-19/05/2009 |
| Date of birth | 20/06/1958 |
| Parent | Late Biranchi Narayan Tudu |
| Marital status | Married |
| Spouse’s name | Shri Shyam Charan Murmu. |
| Qualification | B.A |
| Profession | Politics |
| Hobby | Reading and Knitting |
| Special Interest | Work for society through the different social organizations. |
| Cultural Activities | Associated with Adivasi socio-education and cultural associations Rairangpur. |
| Permanent Address | Vill-Baidaposi, P.o-Rairangpur, W.No.-2, Dist- Mayurbhanj |
Introduction
- Draupadi Murmu was born to a Santali family on June 20th, 1958, in the Baidaposi area of Rairangpur Odisha. Her name was given by her family Puti Tudu. she was married to Late Shyam Charan Murmu. Her ethnicity is the Santhal tribe. She was awarded the Nilakantha award for best MLA in 2007. Her father and her grandfather were elected as sarpanch under the panchayat raj system. She had two sons and one daughter.
Childhood Of Draupadi Murmu
- Murmu’s birth date is June 20, and she is 64 years old at the time of her political life. She was in 1958. She came from a family of village headmen employed by the Panchayati Raj system. Her parental grandfather, Biranchi Narayan Tudu, was a native of the Mayurbhanj area and lived in the village of Baidaposi. Her life had always been challenging and full of obstacles because she was a tribal lady, not only did she have to contend with the tyranny of society, but she also endured a string of personal tragedies and setbacks. Before being involved in politics at the state level, she worked as a teacher. Murmu’s father belonged to the tribal community Santhal, and yet the journey of Draupadi Murmu was not easy. She completed B. A from Ramadevi women’s college, Bhubaneswar. Then did the job of junior assistant in the department of irrigation and energy in the government of Odisha. Draupadi Murmu worked as a teacher for a long time due to her passion for teaching. She served as a teacher at the Sri Aurobindo integral education and research center of Rairangpur and a junior assistant at the irrigation department of the government of Odisha.
Family Life
- Draupadi Murmu married Shyam Charan Murmu, a bank officer who passed away in 2014. She was the mother of two boys, one of whom bore the name Laxman Murmu and passed away. She lost her other son in 2009. She said in an interview that she struggled with Depression after the death of her son. Draupadi Murmu’s husband Shyam charan Murmu, a bank official died in 2014, leaving her with her daughter Itishree Murmu. Biranchi Narayan Tudu, Draupadi’s father, was a farmer known by his given name. Both of her parents and both of her grandparents held the position of headman in the community. She is the sister of Bhagat Tudu and Sarani Tudu who are her brother. She also lost her mother and brother at that time.
Why Did BJP Pick Draupadi Murmu?
- Murmu took her baby steps while struggling with poverty in one of the most remote and underdeveloped districts of the country. Murmu, a grassroots politician, has many firsts to her credit. She was the first woman and tribal leader from Odisha to be appointed as governor of any state. She served as the governor of Jharkhand from 2015 to 2021, the first governor to complete the term in the state. She was also in consideration for the presidential post in 2017 but later Ramnath Kovind made the cut. The BJP’s move to name Murmu as its presidential candidate comes ahead of assembly elections in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh. The four states have 128 seats reserved for scheduled Tribes of which the BJP had won just 35 seats in the last assembly elections.
Starting A Political Career
- Murmu joined the Bhartiya Jamaat party in 1997 and was elected as the councilor of the Rairangpur Nagar panchayat. Murmu became the chairperson of the Rairangpur Nagar panchayat in 2000. She also served as the National Vice President of Bhartiya Jamaat party schedule Tribes morcha. During the Bhartiya Janata Party and Biju Janata dal coalition government in Odisha, she was the minister of state with independent charge for commerce and Transport from March 6th,2000, to August 6, 2002, and fisheries and animals. Resource development from August 6, 2002, to May 16, 2004. She is a former Odisha minister and MLA from the Rairangpur Assembly constituency in the years 2000 and 2004. She was conferred Nikantha Award for best MLA by Odisha legislative assembly in 2007.
Governor Of Jharkhand
In 2015 18th may Murmu was appointed as the governor of Jharkhand. It was never an easy assignment for the occupant of the Raj Bhavan in Jharkhand, the state born out of a people’s struggle to foreground the political and social rights of tribal communities. There were frequent changes of government and MLAs often switched loyalties. Murmu however, created a record of being the first governor to complete a full term and then served an extra year before exiting the office in 2021.
When Murmu became governor, there was a BJP government in Jharkhand. The Raghunath dad-led government brought in two Bills to amend the Chita Nagpur Tenancy Act 1908 and the Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act 1949. These amendments related to allowing conversion of land use in tribal areas from agriculture to commercial purposes and set off a major uproar among tribal groups and civil society. These Acts were articles of faith in the battle for land rights and the rights over natural resources for tribal communities, fought and won in the teeth of opposition and against the British colonial rule. To amend these Acts was akin to a reversal of any gains made by tribal people in terms of land rights. Murmu as governor, someone constitutionally empowered to intervene in issues related to scheduled areas, soon intervened and rejected the two Bills when they were presented to her, an act which won her approbation from the opposition, with current chief minister Hemant Soren lauding her for her sensitivity for providing a balm to society that was on the boil for the last six months.
Working Relationship
- When the government changed in Jharkhand in 2019, Mr.Soren and Murmu managed a good working relationship. Ironically, Mr. Soren is part of the opposition grouping, which has announced former Yashwant Sinha, a former Finance minister (in the Vajpayee- led NDA government) as its presidential candidate. The distance traveled by Murmu, from Rairangpur to the Raisina Hills, is akin to the lonely tough furrow ploughed by tribal communities in India, who, despite being at the forefront of India’s struggles against the British colonial rule, had to wait till the republic’s 75th anniversary to get its shot at the top job.
2022 Presidential Campaign
- In June 2022, the BJP nominated Murmu as the National Democratic Alliance’s candidate for president of India for the 2022 election the following month there is a high chance that she might win the election due to huge bipartisan support. She is getting from nearly all political parties. All national democratic alliance partners pledge their support. Opposition and neutral parties like Biju Janata Dal, YSR congress party, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Janata dal (secular), Bahujan Samajwadi party, Telugu Desam Party, and Shiromani Akali Dal pledge their support to Murmu. The 2022 Indian presidential election will be the 16th presidential election to be held in India. Presently Ram Nath Kovind is the incumbent president of India. Article 56(1) of the constitution of India provides that the president of India shall remain in office for a period of five years. Consequent to the expiry of the term of President Ram Nath Kovind, an election poll to fill in the office is scheduled to be held on 18th July 2022 and the counting of votes will take place on 21st July 2022. On 21st June 2022, Yashwant Sinha former BJP leader was unanimously chosen as the common candidate of UPA and other opposition parties for the 2022 presidential Election. On the same day, NDA chose Draupadi Murmu as its presidential candidate. Yashwant Sinha was picked as the consensus candidate of the non- BJP parties. His name came up after three earlier opposition picks- nationalist congress chief shared Pawar former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah and former Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi declined the offer to stand. The president is elected by the members of the electoral college, comprising elected members of both House of Parliament and legislative assemblies of all states as well as the National capital Territory of Delhi and the Union Territory of Puducherry.
Ram Nath Kovind is the 14th and the current president, have been elected on 21 July 2017.
Draupadi Murmu was elected as the 15th president on 21 July 2022 and is due to take office on 25th July. Murmu had sealed her victory in the presidential election over opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha by crossing the halfway mark and polling well over 53% votes by the end of the third round itself. Murmu won by an overwhelming margin against Sinha after receiving over 64% valid votes in a day-long counting of ballots of MPs and MLAs, comprising the electoral college, to succeed Ram Nath Kovind to become the country’s 15th president. After the end of the counting process that continued for more than 10 hours, returning officer P.C Mody declared Murmu as the winner and said that she got 6,76,803 votes against Sinha’s 3,80,177 votes. Prime minister Modi visited her house and congratulated her on her success.
Electoral system
The president of India is indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of the elected members of both Houses of Parliament, The elected members of the legislative assemblies of the 28 states, and the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the union territories of Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu and Kashmir. As of 2022, the electoral college comprises 776 MPs and 4,033 MLAs (excluding the 90 MLAs of the currently dissolved and recently delimited Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly). The election commission assigns varying numbers of votes to these members, such that the total weight of MPs and those of MLAs is roughly equal and that the voting power of states and territories is proportional to their population. Overall, the members of the electoral college were eligible to cast 1,086,431 votes yielding a threshold for a majority of 5,43,216 votes. The nomination of a candidate for election to the office of the president must be subscribed by at least 50 electors as proposers and 50 electors as seconders. The election is held by means of a secret ballot under the instant run-off voting system. The manner of election of the president is provided by Article 55 of the constitution, and Article 58 of the Indian constitution provides that the president and Vice President of India must be citizens of India and at least 35 years old. The presidential candidate must be qualified for elections in the same way as a member of the Lok Sabha and must not hold any office of profit under the Indian government. Candidates for the presidency typically seek the nomination of one of the political parties, in which case each party devises a method (such as a primary election) to choose the candidate the party seems best suited to run for the position. Traditionally, the primary elections are indirect elections where voters cast ballots for a slate of party delegates to pledge to a particular candidate. The party’s delegates then officially nominate candidates to run on the party’s behalf. The general election in July is also an indirect election, where voters cast ballots for a slate of members of the electoral college, and the elector in return directly elect the president and Vice President.
By convention, the Secretary-General, Lok Sabha, and the Secretary-General, Rajya Sabha are appointed as the returning officers by rotation. For the 2017 presidential election, the Secretary-General, Lok Sabha was appointed as returning officer. Therefore, for the 2022 presidential election, the Secretary-General, Rajya Sabha Shri P.C Mody was appointed as the Returning officer in notification by ECI on 13th June 2022.
Latest News
- On June 21st, 2022, the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, envisioned a caring Indian society as the National democratic alliance (NDA) chose smt. Draupadi Murmu is the candidate for the next presidential election in 2022. It is a political decision that has been given a great deal of thought, particularly since she has the potential to become India’s very first tribal woman president. The village of Baidaposi located in the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha is where Murmu may be found. She has always worked very hard for her community even though she is a member of a tribal group, and this has garnered her a great deal of recognition. She was also a member of the Odisha legislative assembly and served as the governor of the state of Jharkhand throughout her career. Draupadi Murmu has been a member of the Bharatiya Janata party since its inception. She is now the Bharatiya Janata party’s official candidacy for the National Democratic Alliance’s presidential election campaign in 2022. The NDA settled upon this at the meeting of the BJPs parliamentary Board.
Controversy
Five days ahead of the presidential election, congress party Ajoy Kumar said that NDA candidate Draupadi represents an “evil philosophy”. Yashwant Sinha (opposition presidential candidate) is a good candidate. Draupadi Murmu is a decent person, but she represents an evil philosopher of India. We shouldn’t make her a symbol of tribals. Ram Nath Kovind is president but atrocities are happening against SCs. Modi’s government is fooling people, Kumar told ANI. The former IPS officer opined that Draupadi Murmu should not be made a representative of tribals. Currently AICC in charge of Tripura, Nagaland, and Sikkim, Kumar accused the Narendra Modi government of fooling the people. He said despite Ram Nath Kovind, who belongs to the scheduled caste community, being president of India, atrocities against them have not stopped. In fact, he alleged that the condition of scheduled castes has become “worsen” over the last few years. Creating symbols and fooling the people of India is what the Modi government is all about. This is a fight for the soul of the nation and “all like-minded parties should vote for Yashwant Sinha” he urged. At a time when NDA, led by PM Modi, has announced smt. Draupadi Murmu, a woman from Adivasi samaj, as its nominee for the president’s office, a move that will significantly empower the tribals, congress leader calls her evil by association just because she is a tribal shame, BJP’s IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya tweeted. BJPs national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala accused the congress of insulting India’s first woman tribal president candidate. The election for India’s 15th president will be held on July 18th. If Draupadi Murmu wins the election she will become the country’s first tribal president and the second woman after Pratibha Patil.
Ram Gopal Varma lands in legal trouble over his controversial tweet on Draupadi Murmu- Mumbai, July 16th a man claiming to be a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker has moved to a court in Mumbai against filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma alleging he had passed “uncharitable “remarks about National Democratic Alliance (NDA) presidential nominee Draupadi Murmu. The complaint seeking action against Varma for offenses under sections 499 and 500(defamation), 504 (intentionally insulting a person), and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian penal code IPC was filed by Subhas Rajora before the metropolitan magistrate courts in Suburban Bandra on July 14th, the complaint’s lawyer DV Saroj Saturday. The magistrate has adjourned the matter to October 11th for taking cognizance of the complaint, he added. The complaint stated that Varma had made derogatory statements through his Twitter handle which outraged the respect of women on social media. His tweets are tantamount to disrespecting the scheduled caste (SC) people. Ram Gopal Varma tweeted “who is Draupadi Murmu? And then adding to his comment he asked who Pandavas and Kauravas and BJP workers felt insulted and hurt.
He retweeted on June 24 and clarified his point by saying that is an irony and not intended in any other way Draupadi in Mahabharata is my favorite character but since the name is such a rarity just remembered the associated characters and hence my expression. Not at all intended to hurt the sentiments of anyone.
RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav, who had announced his support for the joint opposition’s presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha, shamed the ruling NDA picks for the post-Draupadi Murmu saying the Rashtrapati Bhavan didn’t need a “statue”. He said that you have heard Yashwant Sinha speak multiple times, but have you ever heard Draupadi Murmu speaking, I should not say such things, but I have never heard her. I don’t think even you have heard her. She never held a press conference. Tejashwi Yadav said according to the report.
Oath Ceremony
In the oath ceremony of Draupadi Murmu, she said that “This is not only my achievement. It is the achievement of all the poor in the country. The poor can dare to dream now.” Draupadi Murmu on Monday was sworn in as 15th President of India at the Central Hall of the Parliament in New Delhi followed by a 21-gun salute. “Your faith in me has given me strength. I have got this responsibility at such an important time as it is India’s 75 years of Independence. I am also the first President to be born after India got its Independence,” said President Murmu in her first address, while adding, “This is not only my achievement. It is the achievement of all the poor in the country. The poor can dare to dream now. With their blessings and the support of the mothers and daughters of the country I am standing here in front of you now.” Murmu, 64, is also India’s youngest President.
On Thursday, Murmu had scripted history by becoming the first person from the tribal community to occupy India’s top constitutional post after she bagged 64% votes of the electoral college to defeat Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha. She got 2824 first preference votes, valued at 6,76,803 votes, while Sinha had only managed to get 1,877 first preference votes, valued at 3,80,177.
- Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot said that he was left ‘impressed’ by president Draupadi Murmu’s words.
- As Draupadi Murmu took oath as India’s 15th President, PM Narendra Modi called it a “watershed moment for the poor, the marginalized, and the downtrodden.”
- Draupadi Murmu also said that her name was changed by her teacher.
- Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti slammed Ram Nath Kovind, saying the “outgoing president leaves behind a legacy where the Indian Constitution was trampled upon umpteenth times.”
- After the conclusion of the ceremony, President Draupadi Murmu greets PM Narendra Modi, Union Ministers, Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, Chief Minister, and other dignitaries at the Central Hall of the Parliament.
- Draupadi Murmu pays tribute to the Samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat in Delhi.
- Murmu is the second President of Odisha, after V.V. Giri, who served as the fourth President of India from 1969 to 1974.
Draupadi Murmu is the 10th successive president to take oath on July 25 since 1977. Records show that since 1977, successive presidents have taken oath on 25. Neelam Sanjiv Reddy, the sixth president of India, took oath on July 25, 1977. Since then, successive presidents, including Giani Zail Singh, R Venkataraman, Shankar Dayal Sharma, K R Narayanan, APJ Abdul Kalam, Pratibha Patil, Pranab Mukherjee, and Ram Nath Kovind have taken oath on July 25.
President of China Xi Jinping congratulated Draupadi Murmu and also pointed out that China and India are important neighbours of each other, and that a healthy and stable China-India relationship is in line with the fundamental interests of the two countries and their people, as well as conducive to peace, stability, and development in the region and across the world.
Xi said that he attaches great importance to China-India relations, and stands ready to work with Murmu to enhance political mutual trust, deepen practical cooperation, properly handle differences and push bilateral ties forward on the right track, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Perks Enjoyed By The President Of India
The Rashtrapati Bhavan, one of the largest presidential palaces in the world, is home to the president of India. The president would be living in a sprawling 330-acre construction with a built-up area of 200,000 sq ft divided into 340 rooms in a single-story building, with an enormous library and an attached spacious reading space.
The president has the presidential palace with massive stables and a remarkable collection of horses, a set of hospitals, a giant golf course, and the famous Mughal gardens along with four other variations of stunningly decorated gardens.
To take care of the president and the Rashtrapati Bhavan, he /she is provided with a staff of hundreds.
The president is also entitled to two equally lavish holiday retreats. One is the Rashtrapati Nilayam in Hyderabad, and the other is the retreat building in Shimla.
The president is given a stunning Black Mercedes Benz S600 (W221) Pullman guard and a custom-built heavily armored stretch limousine for his/her official visits.
The president also receives other allowances, which include free medical, housing, and treatment facilities for life.
The president’s Bodyguard (PBG) provides security for India’s president. PBG is not only the most senior but also the oldest unit in the Indian Army. It serves as a ceremonial unit during peacetime but can also be deployed during wartime as they are trained paratroopers.
The president of India draws a salary of 5lakh approximately per month.
After retirement, the president of India is entitled to numerous benefits. Some of them are a pension of 1.5 lakh per month, one fully furnished and rent-free bungalow, and free train or air travel with a companion.
Top 13 Facts About Draupadi Murmu
Draupadi Murmu is the first woman to hold the post of governor of Jharkhand.
She was also the first tribal woman to become the full-time governor of any Indian state.
If elected as the president of India, Draupadi Murmu will be the first one from the tribal community to hold the top post.
If elected, she will also be the first pod India who was born after independence. She didn’t have her own house till 2009.
BJP announced Murmu’s name as the NDA candidate for the presidential election.
Draupadi Murmu was appointed the governor of Jharkhand.
Draupadi Murmu was appointed the president of BJP schedule Tribe Morcha, Odisha unit.
She was again elected as an MLA from the same Rairangpur constituency on a BJP ticket.
She was appointed as a M.O.S for fisheries and animal husbandry in the Odisha state government. She remained in the office until 2004.
The year 1997 marked the beginning of Draupadi Murmu’s political career when she was elected to serve as a councilor for the Rairangpur’s vice chairperson. Her tenure there lasted for one year.
Following her victory in the assembly elections held in the Rairangpur seat in 2004, she was subsequently elected to a ministerial position in the BJP party. She began working at the department of transport, trade, fisheries, and animal husbandry in 2000, and she remained employed there until 2004.
She was victorious in the assembly elections in 2004, and this time she was chosen to represent the BJP in the Rairangpur seat.
In 2006, she won the election to serve as the state’s president of the BJP scheduled Tribe morcha and the district president of the BJP in Mayurbhanj. Between the years 2006 and 2009, she held the position
She was chosen to serve as the ninth governor of Jharkhand in May 2015 and remained in that position until May 2021.
She was nominated by the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) to run for the presidency of India in the year 2022 elections.
Draupadi Murmu runs a school where she gives free-of-cost education to the Adivasis people, or we can say, tribal people.
Draupadi Murmu is a vegetarian.
Draupadi taught in the school without taking a salary. She also gave chocolates to the students as a reward.
Two books-moods, moments, and memories have a visual history of the former president of India from 1950-2017, and the other one titled ‘The First Citizen’, has a pictorial record of president kovind’s term. The third book ‘Interpreting Geometries- Flooring of Rashtrapati Bhavan ‘, is a unique repository of flooring patterns designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens for the abode of the Viceroy of India in 1912.
Sammukta Sur
Writer
13angle
