New Delhi, India – Lawmakers elected India’s first female president, officials announced Saturday, in a vote seen as a step forward for the millions of Indian women and girls who face bitter discrimination in everyday life.
The position is largely ceremonial. But observers said the selection of Pratibha Patil, 72, in a vote by the national parliament and state politicians will widen the role of women in the nation’s often male-dominated political scene.
“This is a victory of the principles which the Indian people uphold,” Patil said. As she waved a victory sign, marigolds and colored powders were tossed at her feet.
Patil had been expected to win because of her support from the governing Congress party and her deep ties with Sonia Gandhi, leader of the party and the Gandhi dynasty.
Patil took in nearly two-thirds of the votes, defeating Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, a Hindu nationalist party.
Over four decades, Patil has held various political offices. A trained lawyer, she most recently served as the first female governor of the northern state of Rajasthan.
