Pranab Mukherjee was the 13th President of India, serving from 2012 to 2017. Before that, he spent nearly five decades in Indian politics as a senior Congress leader, holding almost every major cabinet post — Finance, Defence, External Affairs, and Commerce. He's remembered as one of the most experienced statesmen India ever had, and in 2019 he received the Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian award.
Early life and background
Pranab Mukherjee was born on December 11, 1935, in Mirati, a village in Bengal that is now part of West Bengal, India. His father was a freedom fighter who had been jailed for opposing British rule and later served in the West Bengal state legislature.
He studied history, political science, and law at the University of Calcutta. Politics wasn't a distant dream for him — it ran in the family.
How his political career started
Mukherjee's big break came in 1969, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi helped him get elected to the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of India's Parliament, on a Congress ticket. He rose quickly and became one of her most trusted aides, joining her cabinet in 1973.
By the early 1980s, he'd already held his first term as Finance Minister, serving from 1982 to 1984. His career wasn't without setbacks, though. After Indira Gandhi's assassination in 1984, Mukherjee believed he was the rightful successor rather than her son Rajiv Gandhi, and he was pushed out of the cabinet as a result.
The offices he held
Over five decades, Mukherjee cycled through nearly every top ministry in the Indian government. Here's a quick snapshot:
Position | Years |
|---|---|
Finance Minister | 1982–84, 2009–12 |
Defence Minister | 2004–06 |
External Affairs Minister | 2006–09, 1995–96 |
Commerce Minister | Held at various points |
Lok Sabha member | 2004–12 |
Rajya Sabha member | Five terms starting 1969 |
He also represented India on the international stage, sitting on the Board of Governors of the IMF, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and African Development Bank, and leading Indian delegations to UN General Assembly sessions and Commonwealth conferences.
Becoming President
In 2012, the Congress Party picked Mukherjee as its presidential candidate. Since the presidency is meant to be non-partisan, he stepped down from the Lok Sabha and gave up the Finance Ministry to run. He won comfortably and took office on July 25, 2012, becoming the 13th President of India.
The role of President in India is largely ceremonial, but observers noted something different about Mukherjee. Given his decades of governing experience, he stayed more actively involved in governance than most presidents before him. His term ended in 2017, and Ram Nath Kovind succeeded him.
Why he's remembered
A few things stand out about his legacy:
He's one of the rare Indian politicians to have held Finance, Defence, and External Affairs portfolios at different points in his career
He authored several books on the Indian economy and nation-building, including Beyond Survival: Emerging Dimensions of Indian Economy
In 2019, he received the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour
Even after leaving active politics, he remained a respected voice, known for speaking his mind, including at events hosted by ideologically different parties
Pranab Mukherjee's final years
Mukherjee passed away on August 31, 2020, in Delhi, after brain surgery left him in a coma and he later developed septic shock from a lung infection. He was 84. His death marked the end of a political journey that touched nearly every major chapter of modern Indian governance, from the Emergency era under Indira Gandhi to the presidency under Narendra Modi's government.