Droupadi Murmu takes oath as 15th President of India, calls it achievement of every poor in India
Murmu scripted history on Thursday after defeating Opposition Presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha by a huge margin. (PTI Photo)
Droupadi Murmu was sworn in as the 15th President of India on Monday, followed by a 21-gun salute. Chief Justice of India NV Ramana administered the oath of office to her at the Parliament's Central Hall.
She is the first tribal President of India, and the first President to be born after independence. Murmu is also the second woman President of India after Pratibha Patil.
President Murmu took the oath in the name of god in Hindi.
What she said after the oath: "I am the first President of the country who was born in independent India. We will have to speed up our efforts to meet the expectations that our freedom fighters had with the citizens of independent India," President Murmu said after the swearing in.
Murmu said that reaching the Presidential post is not her personal achievement, it is the achievement of every poor in India. "My nomination is evidence that the poor in India can not only dream but also fulfill those dreams," she said.
"It is satisfying to see that people who were devoid of development for years can see me as their reflection. My nomination has blessings of the poor behind it, it's a reflection of the dreams and capabilities of crores of women" President Murmu said.
"I want all sisters and daughters to be empowered more as they continue to increase their contribution in every field," she said.
Johar! Namaskar!
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) July 25, 2022
I humbly greet all the fellow citizens from this sacred Parliament, a symbol of the hopes, aspirations and rights of all the citizens of India.
Your affection, trust and support will be my greatest strength in discharging my functions and responsibilities.
Who all attended the ceremony: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Chief Ministers of several states, Members of Parliament and Army heads and others were present during the ceremony.
Murmu had reached the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Monday morning where she was welcomed by outgoing President Ram Nath Kovind and his wife Savita Kovind. Later on, she moved for Parliament House for the swearing in.
Visits Raj Ghat: Earlier this morning, Murmu, 64, paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi, father of the nation, at Raj Ghat.
#WATCH | President-elect #DroupadiMurmu pays tribute at Rajghat in Delhi. She will take oath as the 15th President of the country today.
— ANI (@ANI) July 25, 2022
(Video Source: Rashtrapati Bhavan Twitter account) pic.twitter.com/pen5zhVHwR
Murmu scripted history on Thursday after defeating Opposition Presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha in a landslide victory. Murmu got 6,76,803 votes against Sinha's 3,80,177 votes.
Murmu won the election by huge margin against Sinha after receiving over 64 per cent valid votes of MPs and MLAs, comprising the electoral college.
Twitter handle updates: President of India's Twitter handle was updated after President Murmu was sworn in.
Early life: Born in the Santhal community, Murmu started her career as a teacher. She began her political career as a councillor in Rairangpur Nagar Panchayat of Odisha's Mayurbhanj district in 1997. Murmu rose through the ranks and became a minister in the BJD-BJP alliance government in Odisha in 2000.
A two-term former MLA from Rairangpur, Murmu held on to her assembly seat in 2009 when the BJD had snapped ties with the BJP weeks ahead of the state elections which were swept by CM Naveen Patnaik's party.
In 2017, Murmu had stopped the BJP government’s plan to amend land tenancy acts in Jharkhand. She had returned the bills introduced to amend the Chotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) Act and Santhal Pargana Tenancy (SPT) Act.