Indian-origin economist Tharman Shanmugaratnam sworn in as Singapore’s president

Indian-origin Singapore-born economist Tharman Shanmugaratnam was on Thursday sworn in because the ninth president of the city-state.

Tharman, 66, will serve a six-year time period. He succeeds President Halimah Yacob, Singapore’s first feminine president, whose time period ended on September 13.

Tharman, who has served Singapore all his life in public service, was overwhelmingly endorsed by the city-state’s predominantly Chinese society.

He served as a senior minister between 2019 and 2023; coordinating minister for social insurance policies between 2015 and 2023; and Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore between 2011 and 2023. He additionally served as Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister from May 2011 to May 2019.

Singapore, previously, has had two Indian-origin presidents.

Sellapan Ramanathan, popularly referred to as S R Nathan, a Singaporean politician and civil servant of Tamil descent, served because the president of Singapore. In 2009, Nathan defeated Benjamin Sheares to develop into Singapore’s longest-serving president.

Chengara Veetil Devan Nair, higher referred to as Devan Nair, served because the third president of Singapore from 1981 till his resignation in 1985. Born in 1923 in Malacca, Malaysia, Nair was the son of a rubber plantation clerk who was initially from Thalassery, Kerala.

Edited By:

Sudeep Lavania

Published On:

Sep 14, 2023