New Delhi, 22 July: A woman who hails from a minority ethnic community was chosen Thursday as India’s new president, a largely ceremonial position. Droupadi Murmu, a leader from India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, was elected by the Indian Parliament and state legislatures in voting held Monday, making her the first president from one of the country’s tribes and the second-ever woman to hold the position. She will be formally sworn in as the president on Monday. Murmu, 64, who hails from the eastern state of Odisha and was governor of Jharkhand state from 2015-2021, is a member of the Santal ethnic minority, one of India’s largest tribal groups. Santhal (also known as Satar) community  also lives in the eastern Nepal in Jhapa and Morang districts. She started out as a school teacher before entering politics and has been a two-time lawmaker from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party. Murmu’s father and her grandfather were village headmen in Baidaposi in Mayurbhanj district in Odisha. (AP)