India’s first female president elected

Droupadi Murmu was born into a family belonging to the Santhal tribe. She started her career in education and was active in the local community. She later entered politics and became the governor of the Indian state of Jharkhand, among other things.

So far she has been elected president by the various parliaments of India. Her victory was secured thanks to the support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party, which dominates the federal and state political scene in India. “Daughter of India, from a tribal community born in a remote region of eastern India, has been elected our President,” Prime Minister Modi wrote on Twitter.

Modi hopes to get more votes among the indigenous population for the upcoming parliamentary elections in 2024. India has more than 700 indigenous tribes, a total of 85 million people, or eight percent of the population. They are usually poor and often excluded from society.

In India the president may officially command the army, but it is the prime minister who wields executive power in the world’s largest democracy. The president plays an important role in political crises.