On 27 October 2026, President Droupadi Murmu paid floral tributes at Rashtrapati Bhavan to Shri K.R. Narayanan, former President of India, on his birth anniversary.
Narayanan was born on 27 October 1920. He was India's 10th President (1997-2002) and 9th Vice-President (1992-1997), and the first Dalit to hold either office.
His presidency also coincided with an unstable period in national politics. In his first two years in office India had two Prime Ministers, two general elections and two dissolutions of the Lok Sabha. In that time Narayanan used the President's limited room for independent judgement more openly than most of his predecessors. That is why he is useful for the exam: his decisions are concrete examples of what the Constitution allows a President to do, and what it does not.
From Uzhavoor to Rashtrapati Bhavan
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1920 | Born on 27 October at Perumthanam, Uzhavoor, in the princely state of Travancore (now Kottayam district, Kerala) |
| 1940-43 | BA and MA in English literature, University of Travancore |
| 1945 | Studied economics and political science at the London School of Economics under Harold Laski, on a Tata scholarship |
| 1949 | Joined the Indian Foreign Service at Jawaharlal Nehru's request |
| 1967-1984 | Ambassador to Thailand, Turkey, China (from 1976) and the United States (1980-84) |
| 1979-80 | Vice-Chancellor, Jawaharlal Nehru University |
| 1984, 1989, 1991 | Elected to the Lok Sabha from Ottapalam, Kerala; Minister of State for Planning, External Affairs and Science and Technology under Rajiv Gandhi |
| 1992-97 | Vice-President of India, and so Chairman of the Rajya Sabha |
| 1997-2002 | President of India, from 25 July 1997 to 25 July 2002 |
| 2005 | Died in New Delhi on 9 November |
The China posting is the one to remember. Narayanan went to Beijing in 1976, when India and China restored relations at the level of ambassador. They had not exchanged ambassadors since the period of the 1962 war.
He won the 1997 presidential election with about 95% of the electoral college's vote. His only opponent was T.N. Seshan, the former Chief Election Commissioner.
What the Constitution lets a President do
The President is the constitutional head of the Union. Under Article 53 the executive power is vested in the President. Under Article 74(1) there is a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at its head to aid and advise the President. Two amendments decide how much weight that advice carries:
| Amendment | Change to Article 74(1) |
|---|---|
| 42nd Amendment, 1976 | The President "shall" act in accordance with the advice |
| 44th Amendment, 1978 | Added a proviso: the President may require the Council to reconsider its advice, but must act on the advice given after reconsideration |
So the President can return advice once, and is bound by the second advice. Article 74(2) adds that courts cannot inquire whether any advice was given, or what it was.
Within this framework, the President has a small area of real judgement, which Narayanan used:
- Choosing a Prime Minister under Article 75(1) when no party has a majority in the Lok Sabha.
- Dissolving the Lok Sabha under Article 85(2)(b), especially when a government has lost its majority.
- Returning advice once under the proviso to Article 74(1).
- Returning a Bill for reconsideration under Article 111. This is the suspensive veto; it is not available for a Money Bill. A President can also simply hold a Bill without acting on it, the so-called pocket veto, which Giani Zail Singh used on the Indian Post Office (Amendment) Bill in 1986.
Our notes on the Union Executive and the President and on the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers cover these provisions in full.
The two returned recommendations
Article 356 lets the President take over a State's government (President's Rule) if satisfied that it cannot be carried on in accordance with the Constitution. In practice the President acts on the Union Cabinet's advice. Narayanan twice sent that advice back.
Uttar Pradesh, October 1997. The I.K. Gujral government recommended President's Rule in Uttar Pradesh, where Kalyan Singh was Chief Minister. On 22 October 1997 Narayanan returned the advice for reconsideration under the proviso to Article 74(1). The Cabinet decided not to proceed. Accounts of the episode note that he had studied the Supreme Court's judgment in S.R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994) before he decided. That judgment held that a proclamation under Article 356 is open to judicial review, and that a government's majority should be tested on the floor of the Assembly, not in the Governor's residence.
Bihar, September 1998. The Atal Bihari Vajpayee government recommended President's Rule in Bihar, where Rabri Devi was Chief Minister. On 25 September 1998 Narayanan returned this advice too, and the government did not press it at the time.
The Bihar story had a sequel that is often asked. The Cabinet advised President's Rule again after killings in the State, and it was imposed on 12 February 1999. Under Article 356(3), a proclamation lapses unless both Houses of Parliament approve it within two months. The government did not have a majority in the Rajya Sabha, and it revoked the proclamation in March 1999, after less than four weeks. Rabri Devi returned as Chief Minister on 9 March 1999.
The two cases show the limits of the President's power. Returning advice can delay a decision and force the government to reconsider. It cannot stop a government that sends the same advice again, and the final check on Article 356 lies with Parliament and the courts.
For the full scheme of President's Rule, including its duration limits, see our notes on emergency provisions.
A hung Parliament and two dissolutions
The other area of judgement is government formation. Narayanan made two decisions here that set precedents:
- Dissolution on the Prime Minister's advice. He dissolved the Lok Sabha on 4 December 1997, on Gujral's advice, after the United Front government lost the Congress party's support. He dissolved it again on 26 April 1999, after the Vajpayee government lost a confidence vote by one vote on 17 April and no alternative government could be formed.
- Appointment on evidence of support. After the 1998 general election no party had a majority. Narayanan asked the claimants to show written evidence of support. He appointed Vajpayee Prime Minister on 15 March 1998, on condition that he win a vote of confidence within 10 days. Asking for proof of support, followed by a confidence vote on the floor, has since become the accepted practice.
A "working President"
Narayanan described his own approach in an interview on 14 August 1998. He said he would be a "working President": not an executive President, and not a rubber stamp, but one who works within "the four corners of the Constitution".
Two other actions fit that description.
- He voted. On 16 February 1998 he became the first sitting President to vote in a general election, queuing at a polling booth in New Delhi like any other voter. Presidents are not prevented from voting, but none before him had done so.
- He spoke on the Constitution. On 27 January 2000, at a function in Parliament's Central Hall marking the golden jubilee of the Republic, the government was preparing to review the working of the Constitution. Narayanan asked whether the Constitution had failed the country, or the country had failed the Constitution. The government went ahead and set up the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution in 2000, chaired by Justice M.N. Venkatachaliah.
How the President and Vice-President are elected
His career touches both elections, which are set out differently in the Constitution:
| President | Vice-President | |
|---|---|---|
| Article | 54 and 55 | 66 |
| Electoral college | Elected members of both Houses of Parliament and of the State Legislative Assemblies, including Delhi and Puducherry | All members of both Houses of Parliament, elected and nominated |
| Method | Proportional representation by single transferable vote, secret ballot | The same method |
Six Vice-Presidents have later become President: Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Zakir Husain, V.V. Giri, R. Venkataraman, Shankar Dayal Sharma and K.R. Narayanan. Narayanan, elected in 1997, is the last to have done so. Our article on Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and the list of Presidents has the full table.
🔑 Revision block
The tribute. President Droupadi Murmu paid tribute at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 27 October 2026, Narayanan's birth anniversary.
The person. Born 27 October 1920, Uzhavoor, Travancore (Kottayam, Kerala); died 9 November 2005. 10th President (1997-2002), 9th Vice-President (1992-97); first Dalit to hold either office.
Career. LSE under Harold Laski; IFS 1949; ambassador to Thailand, Turkey, China (1976) and the US (1980-84); VC of JNU; Lok Sabha from Ottapalam (1984, 1989, 1991).
Election. 1997: about 95% of the vote against T.N. Seshan.
Returned advice. UP: 22 October 1997, Gujral Cabinet, Kalyan Singh government; dropped. Bihar: 25 September 1998, Vajpayee Cabinet, Rabri Devi government; President's Rule later imposed 12 February 1999 and revoked in March 1999 without Rajya Sabha approval.
Constitution. Article 74(1); 42nd Amendment (1976) made advice binding; 44th Amendment (1978) allowed one return; Article 74(2) bars courts from inquiring into advice; Article 356(3): approval by both Houses within two months; S.R. Bommai (1994): judicial review and floor test.
Government formation. Vajpayee appointed 15 March 1998 with a confidence vote within 10 days; Lok Sabha dissolved 4 December 1997 and 26 April 1999.
Firsts and phrases. First sitting President to vote (16 February 1998); a "working President" (interview, 14 August 1998); golden jubilee speech, 27 January 2000.
🎯 Practice MCQs
Q1. K.R. Narayanan was the first Dalit to hold the office of President of India. He served as President from: (a) 1992 to 1997 (b) 1997 to 2002 (c) 2002 to 2007 (d) 1987 to 1992
→ (b) He was Vice-President from 1992 to 1997, before becoming President.
Q2. The proviso to Article 74(1), which allows the President to return the Council of Ministers' advice for reconsideration once, was added by the: (a) 24th Amendment, 1971 (b) 42nd Amendment, 1976 (c) 52nd Amendment, 1985 (d) 44th Amendment, 1978
→ (d) The 42nd Amendment had made the advice binding; the 44th added the power to return it once.
Q3. In October 1997, President Narayanan returned the Union Cabinet's recommendation to impose President's Rule in: (a) Uttar Pradesh (b) Bihar (c) Gujarat (d) Kerala
→ (a) The Bihar recommendation of the Vajpayee government was returned in September 1998.
Q4. Under Article 356(3), a proclamation of President's Rule ceases to operate unless approved by both Houses of Parliament within: (a) one month (b) six months (c) two months (d) one year
→ (c) This is why the 1999 proclamation in Bihar was revoked: the government lacked a majority in the Rajya Sabha.
Q5. Consider the following statements: 1. The Vice-President is elected by an electoral college of all members of both Houses of Parliament. 2. Members of State Legislative Assemblies vote in the election of the Vice-President. Which is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2
→ (a) State legislators vote only in the presidential election.
Q6. The Supreme Court judgment that made a proclamation under Article 356 subject to judicial review and stressed the floor test was: (a) Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (b) S.R. Bommai v. Union of India (c) Minerva Mills v. Union of India (d) Golak Nath v. State of Punjab
→ (b) It was delivered in 1994 by a nine-judge bench.
Q7. Who was the only candidate against K.R. Narayanan in the 1997 presidential election? (a) T.N. Seshan (b) Krishan Kant (c) Bhairon Singh Shekhawat (d) Lakshmi Sahgal
→ (a) Lakshmi Sahgal contested against A.P.J. Abdul Kalam in 2002.
Q8. Which of the following Presidents did NOT serve as Vice-President before becoming President? (a) Zakir Husain (b) R. Venkataraman (c) K.R. Narayanan (d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
→ (d) Kalam had been a scientist and Scientific Adviser, not Vice-President.
Q9. The "pocket veto" was exercised by President Giani Zail Singh in 1986 on the: (a) Anti-Defection Bill (b) Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Bill (c) Indian Post Office (Amendment) Bill (d) Lokpal Bill
→ (c) He neither signed nor returned it, and the Bill never became law.
Q10. Before entering politics, K.R. Narayanan served as India's ambassador to the People's Republic of China from 1976. This posting was significant because: (a) it was India's first embassy in Asia (b) it followed the restoration of ambassador-level relations after the 1962 war (c) it led to the signing of the Panchsheel Agreement (d) China had just joined the UN Security Council that year
→ (b) Panchsheel was signed in 1954, and the People's Republic took China's UN seat in 1971.
📋 How this gets asked (PYQ pattern)
Questions on the President are asked in almost every NDA paper, in a few fixed forms.
The first is the Article question: which Article covers the Council of Ministers' advice, the election of the President, President's Rule or the veto. Learn the numbers 53, 54, 55, 66, 74, 75, 85, 111 and 356 as a set.
The second is the amendment question: what the 42nd and the 44th Amendments changed about the President's position. The two are often given as options together, and the trap is to swap them.
The third is the "first" and "only" question: the first Dalit President, the first President to vote, the Vice-Presidents who became President, the only pocket veto. Anniversaries like this one bring these back into the news.
The fourth is the electoral-college question: who votes for the President and who for the Vice-President. Nominated members and State legislators are the usual traps.
At the SSB, the interview may ask whether the President of India is "only a rubber stamp". Narayanan's record supplies the answer: the office has little power, but a President can delay a decision, ask for reasons and make the government's decision public.
Preparing for NDA? Make a one-page table of the President's powers with the Article number for each, and add one real example against every power. Build the base with our NDA study material, follow the daily NDA current affairs, and train with serving-standard faculty in the upcoming Cavalier courses in Delhi.
Source: PIB / President's Secretariat, 27 October 2026. Biographical details, the 1997 and 1998 Article 356 episodes, the 1998 appointment and the 2000 speech cross-checked with Rashtrapati Bhavan records, contemporary reporting in The Tribune and other independent sources.
✍️ Written by Hitendra Deswal — Polity & governance faculty at The Cavalier. Reviewed by the Cavalier Faculty Desk.