Vice Presidents of India

Vice President of India

The Vice-President of India is second-highest ranking government official in the executive branch of the Government of India after the President. The Vice-President also has the legislative function of acting as the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

The Vice-President is elected by the Electoral College composed of the members of the both houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha,of the Patliament in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote. Article 66 of the Indian Constitution states the manner of election of the Vice-President. The Supreme court has the final and exclusive jurisdiction for resolving disputes and doubts relating to the election of the Vice President of India.

The Vice-President may remain in office for a tenure of five years, and can be re-elected. Term can be cut short if he resigns or by a resolution of the Rajya Sabha passed by a majority of all the  members of the Rajya Sabha and agreed to by the Lok Sabha.

The Vice-President of India, is not entitled for any salary, but  is entitled to the salary and allowances payable to the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. All bills, resolution, motion in Rajya Sabha requires his consent. The Vice-President is the ex-officio Chairman of Rajya Sabha. Since he is not a member of Rajya Sabha, he has no right to vote.

The Vice President shall act as President in the absence of the President due to death, resignation, impeachment, or other situations., in that case, the Vice-President shall not perform the duties of the office of the Chairman of Rajya Sabha and shall not be entitled to receive the salary of the Chairman. During this period, he is entitled for the salary and privileges of the President of India.

Eligibilty Creteria :

  • A citizen of India.
  • 35 years of age or above.
  • Posses the qualification of membership of Rajya Sabha.
  • Not hold any office of profit under union, state of local authority. However, for this purpose, the President, Vice-President, Governor of a State and a Minister of the Union or a State, are not held to be holding an office of prof.

List of Vice-Presidents of India:

  Vice President Name Office Tenure
Dr. S Radhakrishnan - Vice President of India Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan May 13, 1952 May 12, 1962
Dr. Zakir Husain - Vice President of India Dr. Zakir Husain May 13, 1962 May 12, 1967
V V Giri - Vice President of India Varahagiri Venkata Giri May 13, 1967 May 3, 1969

Not Available

Gopal Swarup Pathak August 31, 1969 August 30, 1974
B D Jatti - Vice President of India Basappa Danappa Jatti August 31, 1974 August 30, 1979
Mohammed Hidayatullah - Vice President of India Mohammed Hidayatullah August 31, 1979 August 30, 1984
R. Venkataraman- Vice President of India Ramaswamy Venkataraman August 31, 1984 July 27, 1987
Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma - Vice President of India Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma September 3, 1987 July 24, 1992
K R Narayanan - Vice President of India Kocheril Raman Narayanan August 21, 1992 July 24, 1997
Krishna Kant - Vice President of India Krishan Kant ** August 21, 1997 July 27, 2002
Bhairon Singh Shekhawat - Vice President of India Bhairon Singh Shekhawat August 19, 2002 - August 2007
Mohammad Hamid Ansari August 11, 2007 - current