India's ruling party nominates tribal, female politician for president

A female Indian politician from a tribal community has been nominated as presidential candidate by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling nationalist party, officials said on Wednesday.

Droupadi Murmu, 64, a veteran politician who has held senior posts in the eastern state of Odisha, is almost certain to be elected as Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) holds a majority in parliament and is likely to get the support of other parties in state assemblies, say political analysts.

Droupadi Murmu, 64, a veteran Indian politician from a tribal community. Indiatoday.in

Lawmakers vote for India's largely ceremonial president. The presidential poll will be held in July.

Born in a family of the Santhal tribe, Murmu started her career as a school teacher and actively participated on tribal rights issues. She later joined mainstream politics and served as a lawmaker and governor of the eastern state of Jharkhand.

Murmu "devoted her life to serving society and empowering the poor, downtrodden as well as the marginalised," Modi said in a tweet late on Tuesday night, after her name was announced as a candidate.

"I am confident she will be a great president of our nation," Modi said.

If elected, Murmu will become the first tribal president and the second-ever female president.

Indian opposition parties said they would back Yashwant Sinha, a former BJP federal finance minister before he turned rebel, as their candiate for the presidential election.

The Indian Constitution provides a largely ceremonial role for the president, with the prime minister and his cabinet holding executive powers.

But the president has a key role during political crises, such as when a general election is inconclusive, by deciding which party is in the best position to form a federal government.