Pratibha Patil

The 12th President of India, Pratibha Patil, is an Indian politician who is the first and only woman president of the country. Born to Narayan Rao Patil, a government prosecutor, and Gangabai on 19th December 1934, Pratibha Patil grew up in Nadgaon village in Jalgaon, Maharashtra. She is the only girl child among her five other siblings. Having lost her mother early in life, Pratibha Patil was brought up in the care of her aunt. She completed her schooling at R.R. Vidyalaya in Jalgaon, and as per the wish of her mother, she pursued double graduation in Political Science and Economics. She received her Master’s degree from Moolji Jeetha College. Besides academics, Pratibha Patil also shined bright in sports by winning many medals in Table Tennis. After venturing into politics, she decided to pursue Law from Government Law College, Bombay.

Pratibha Patil has also practiced as an advocate before becoming a full-time politician. Pratibha Patil got married to Devisingh Ransingh Shekhawat, an educationalist, and a socio-political leader, in 1965. They have a son Rajendra Shekhawat, a politician, and a daughter, Jyoti Rathore, an engineer. Impressed by Pratibha Patil’s speech at the Rajput convention, the then Chief Minister of Maharashtra Yashwantrao Chavan got roped in to be a member of the Congress Party. In 1962, she contested in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in Jalgaon constituency and won her maiden elections big time and has also been the youngest Maharashtra Legislative Assembly member.

Since then, she has won four consecutive times from 1977 to 1985 and served as an MLA. During her time in the State Legislative, Pratibha Patil has performed several positions, including Cabinet Minister, Deputy Minister, Education Minister, Urban Development and Housing Minister, and more. From 1985 to 1990, Pratibha Patil served as the Member of Parliament at the Rajya Sabha and has held the positions of Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson during the period. In 1991, she became a Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha. Following a break for some years, Pratibha Patil returned to politics and functioned as the Governor of Rajasthan and held the office from 2004 to 2007, becoming the first woman governor of Rajasthan.

Pratibha Patil became the first female president of India, succeeding APJ Abdul Kalam on 25th July 2007 by winning the 13th Presidential election with 638,116 votes. During her power, she has done remarkably by abolishing the practice of child marriage, social suppression of women, and more. Pratibha Patil retired from her service in July 2012. Also, Pratibha Patil has established hostels for working women, schools for students from the countryside, and countless such social works.