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10 Best Facts about President Ramaswamy Venkataraman

Ramaswamy Venkataraman, (born Dec. 4, 1910, Rajamadam, Madras [now Tamil Nadu], India鈥攄ied Jan. 27, 2009, New Delhi), Indian politician, government official and lawyer who was president of India from 1987 to 1992.

Venkataraman studied law at the University of Madras and began his legal practice in 1935.

Venkataraman was elected to independent India鈥檚 Provisional Parliament in 1950 as a member of the Indian National Congress party.

He subsequently was a member of the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Indian parliament) from 1952 to 1957 and from 1977 onward.

From 1957 to 1967 he was minister of industry and labour for the state of Madras (now Tamil Nadu).

Venkataraman eventually joined the central government, serving as minister of finance and industry (1980鈥�82) and minister of defence (1982鈥�84).

Venkataraman, the nation鈥檚 eighth president (1987-1992), loved to present himself as a 鈥渃opybook president.鈥� But, he faced such heavy situations that none of his predecessors did.

Here are the 10 best facts about President R Ventaraman.

1. President Venkataraman  was a Prominent Lawyer

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He had his school education in Govt Boys Higher Secondary School, Pattukottai and did his undergraduate at the National College, Tiruchirappalli.

Educated locally and in the city of Madras (now Chennai), Venkataraman obtained his master’s degree in economics from Loyola College, Madras.

He later qualified in Law from the Law College, Madras. Venkataraman was enrolled in the Madras High Court in 1935 and in the Supreme Court in 1951.

Venkataraman’s interest in the law continued during this period.

In 1946, when the transfer of power from British to Indian hands was imminent, the Government of India included him in the panel of lawyers sent to Malaya and Singapore.

His brief was to defend Indian nationals charged with offences of collaboration during the Japanese occupation of those two places.

In the years 1947 to 1950, Venkataraman served as Secretary of the Madras Provincial Bar Federation.

2. President Ventaraman was a Freedom Fighter

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While practising law, Venkataraman became increasingly interested in India’s freedom struggle.

He actively participated in the Indian National Congress and Mahatma Gandhi-led Quit India Movement of 1942, also known as the August Movement.

As a result, he was imprisoned for two years by the British government.

His interest in the law remained undiminished and after being released from jail in 1944, he founded the Labour Law Journal.

3.  Law and trade Unionism Introduced President Ventaraman to Politics

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Law and trade activity led to Venkataraman’s increasing association with politics. 

He was elected to both the free India’s Provisional Parliament and the First Parliament.

During his term of legislative activity, Venkataraman attended the 1952 Session of the Metal Trades Committee of the International Labour Organisation as a workers’ delegate.

He was a member of the Indian Parliamentary Delegation to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in New Zealand.

Venkataraman was also Secretary to the Congress Parliamentary Party from 1953 to 1954.

4. Pres. Venkataraman Helped Draft the Indian Constitution

He was a member of the constituent assembly that drafted India’s constitution.

With his extensive knowledge of the law, he helped to draft the Constitution of India and was elected to independent India’s Provisional Parliament in 1950 as a member of the Congress party.

He was elected to the Lok Sabha four times and was also Secretary to the Congress Parliamentary Party from 1953 to 1954.

5.  Venkataraman resigned from the Lok Sabha to Join State Government

Although re-elected to Parliament in 1957, Venkataraman resigned his seat in the Lok Sabha to join the State Government of Madras as a Minister.

There Shri Venkataraman held the portfolios of Industries, Labour, Cooperation, Power, Transport and Commercial Taxes from 1957 to 1967.

During this time, he was also Leader of the Upper House, namely, the Madras Legislative Council.

From this assignment, he shot to the apex of national leadership.

6. Venkataraman had Stellar Ministerial Performaces

Prime Minister Indira Gandhi appointed him a Member of the Union Planning Commission.

Its mandate was supervision of matters of industry, labour, power, transport, communications and railways.

On January 14, 1980, he became the Union Minister of Finance and served in the post till January 15, 1982.

He was  Minister of Defence till August 2, 1984.

7.  As a Minister he Oversaw the Fruition of  India Missile Programme

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During his tenure as the Minister of Defence, he initiated India’s first missile programme named Integrated Guided Missile Development Program, shifted A P J Abdul Kalam from the space programme and made him the head of the missile programme.

India had begun doubling its efforts to strengthen its missile system by 1979.

But only in 1982, under the tenure of Indira Gandhi as Prime Minister and Venkataraman as Defence Minister, did DRDO鈥檚 missile programme flourish.

When Kalam presented his findings to Venkataraman, Kalam recommended 鈥榩hased development鈥� of five missiles the Trishul and Akash surface-to-air missiles, the Nag anti-tank missile, the Prithvi short-range ballistic missile and the Agni technology demonstrator.

Venkataraman convinced Kalam to opt for simultaneous development.

8. President Venkataraman  was  a Recipient of Many Awards  and Accolades

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Venkataraman was a recipient of the Tamra Patra for his participation in the Indian freedom struggle.

He also received the Soviet Land Prize for his travelogue on the Chief Minister of the then Madras State, K Kamaraj’s visit to the Socialist countries.

He received a souvenir from the Secretary-General of the United Nations for distinguished service as President of the UN Administrative Tribunal.

The Sankaracharya of Kancheepuram conferred on him the title of “Sat Seva Ratna” . He was a great devotee of the Paramacharya of Kanchi.

9. Pres. Venkataraman was the First to Write a Presidential Memoir + other Books

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Ramaswamy Venkataraman was a published author.

Also, he was the first person to write a memoir of his days as the president-My Presidential Years.

Other titles under his belt include:

• Role of Planning in Industrial Development, by Ramaswami Venkataraman. Published by Govt. of India Press, 1969.
• The Role of a Private Member of Parliament, by Ramaswami Venkataraman. Published by Harold Laski Institute of Political Science, 1986.
• My Presidential Years 鈥� R Venkataraman, by R Venkataraman. 1995. HarperCollins/Indus. 
• Venkataraman on Contemporary Issues, by Ramaswami Venkataraman, K. Venkatasubramanian. Published by Variant Communications, 1996.
• Relevance of Gandhi: And Other Essays, by K Swaminathan, Ramaswami Venkataraman. Published by Gandhigram Trust, 1998.

10. He was President during a Tumultuous Period

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His term was difficult, prime minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated and there was the stocks scam and the Defamation Bill.

He worked with four prime ministers during his tenure 鈥� Rajiv Gandhi, V.P. Singh, Chandrasekhar and P.V. Narasimha Rao.

Apart from being a strong advocate of the multi-party system, Venkataraman was also a staunch Nehru-Gandhi supporter.

As President, his support for Congress often got him into trouble. He was accused of playing into the Congress party鈥檚 plans and compromising on the integrity of the President鈥檚 office.

In fact, half of Parliament once boycotted his opening address to the legislature and demanded his resignation. 

The DMK鈥檚 V. Gopalaswami even referred to Rashtrapati Bhavan as 鈥渁 branch office of the Congress Party鈥�. The National Front called him out for 鈥渄estroying the Constitution鈥�.

The former president fell ill and was admitted to the Army Hospital.

He breathed his last at age of 98 on January 27, 2009, due to multiple organ failures.