Did you know who gave Droupadi as President Murmu's first name?
When questioned why she is called Droupadi, a name akin to the Mahabharata's character, she explained that her prior name was disliked by her teacher and was changed permanently. She also stated that her name had been altered multiple times, from Durpadi to Dorpdi.
FollowDroupadi, the first tribal President of India, was named after a figure in the ancient Mahabharata by her school teacher. In an interview with an Odia video magazine a few years ago, she disclosed that her Santhali name Puti was altered to Droupadi by a teacher in school. Murmu informed the magazine that it was handed to her by a teacher from another area, not her hometown of Mayurbhanj. Teachers in the tribal-dominated Mayurbanjh area used to go from Balasore or Cuttack in the 1960s, she said. When questioned why she is called Droupadi, a name akin to the Mahabharata's character, she explained that her prior name was disliked by her teacher and was changed permanently.
She also stated that her name had been altered multiple times, from Durpadi to Dorpdi. A girl inherits her grandmother's name, whereas a male inherits his grandfather's name, she explained. Droupadi, who bore the surname Tudu in school and college, began using the title Murmu after marrying bank official Shyam Charan Tudu.
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Murmu took the oath of office as India's 15th President on Monday. At a ceremony in Parliament's Central Hall, Chief Justice of India N V Ramana administered her oath. Murmu has expressed her views on the reservation of women in politics even before she was elected to the country's highest constitutional seat.
Murmu, on the other hand, believes that women should focus on qualitative politics and raise their voices for empowerment in Parliament or state legislatures. She had stated that the ladies needed to improve their qualitative acumen by highlighting people's difficulties in the appropriate settings.
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In 2013, the 15th President of India lost her younger son Sipun in a car accident. "I have witnessed three deaths of my family members in a six-month period," Murmu said, adding that her husband Shyam Charan too grew unwell and died in 2014.
(WIth PTI inputs)
