List of presidents of the partyMain article: Congress President
Name of President Life Span Year of Presidency Place of Conference
Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee 29 December 1844- 1906 1885 Bombay
Dadabhai Naoroji 4 September 1825- 1917 1886 Calcutta
Badruddin Tyabji 10 October 1844- 1906 1887 Madras
George Yule 1829–1892 1888 Allahabad
Sir William Wedderburn 1838–1918 1889 Bombay
Sir Pherozeshah Mehta 4 August 1845- 1915 1890 Calcutta
P. Anandacharlu August 1843- 1908 1891 Nagpur
Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee 29 December 1844- 1906 1892 Allahabad
Dadabhai Naoroji 4 September 1825- 1917 1893 Lahore
Alfred Webb 1834–1908 1894 Madras
Surendranath Banerjea 10 November 1848- 1925 1895 Pune
Rahimtulla M. Sayani 5 April 1847- 1902 1896 Calcutta
Sir C. Sankaran Nair 11 July 1857- 1934 1897 Amraoti
Ananda Mohan Bose 23 September 1847- 1906 1898 Madras
Romesh Chunder Dutt 13 August 1848- 1909 1899 Lucknow
Sir Narayan Ganesh Chandavarkar 2 December 1855- 1923 1900 Lahore
Sir Dinshaw Edulji Wacha 2 August 1844- 1936 1901 Calcutta
Surendranath Banerjea 10 November 1825- 1917 1902 Ahmedabad
Lalmohan Ghosh 1848–1909 1903 Madras
Sir Henry Cotton 1845–1915 1904 Bombay
Gopal Krishna Gokhale 9 May 1866- 1915 1905 Benares
Dadabhai Naoroji 4 September 1825- 1917 1906 Calcutta
Rashbihari Ghosh 23 December 1845- 1921 1907 Surat
Rashbihari Ghosh 23 December 1845- 1921 1908 Madras
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1909 Lahore
Sir William Wedderburn 1838–1918 1910 Allahabad
Pandit Bishan Narayan Dar 1864–1916 1911 Calcutta
Rao Bahadur Raghunath Narasinha Mudholkar 1857–1921 1912 Bankipur
Nawab Syed Muhammad Bahadur ?- 1919 1913 Karachi
Bhupendra Nath Bose 1859–1924 1914 Madras
Lord Satyendra Prasanna Sinha March 1863- 1928 1915 Bombay
Ambica Charan Mazumdar 1850–1922 1916 Lucknow
Annie Besant 1 October 1847- 1933 1917 Calcutta
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1918 Delhi
Syed Hasan Imam 31 August 1871- 1933 1918 Bombay (Special Session)
Pandit Motilal Nehru 6 May 1861- 6 February 1931 1919 Amritsar
Lala Lajpat Rai 28 January 1865- 17 November 1928 1920 Calcutta (Special Session)
C. Vijayaraghavachariar 1852- 19 April 1944 1920 Nagpur
Hakim Ajmal Khan 1863- 29 December 1927 1921 Ahmedabad
Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das 5 November 1870- 16 June 1925 1922 Gaya
Maulana Mohammad Ali 10 December 1878- 4 January 1931 1923 Kakinada
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad 1888- 22 February 1958 1923 Delhi (Special Session)
Mahatma Gandhi 2 October 1869- 30 January 1948 1924 Belgaum
Sarojini Naidu 13 February 1879- 2 March 1949 1925 Kanpur
S. Srinivasa Iyengar September 11, 1874- 19 May 1941 1926 Gauhati
Dr. M A Ansari 25 December 1880- 10 May 1936 1927 Madras
Pandit Motilal Nehru 6 May 1861- 6 February 1931 1928 Calcutta
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1929 & 30 Lahore
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel 31 October 1875- 15 December 1950 1931 Karachi
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1932 Delhi
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1933 Calcutta
Nellie Sengupta 1886–1973 1933 Calcutta
Dr. Rajendra Prasad 3 December 1884- 28 February 1963 1934 & 35 Bombay
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1936 Lucknow
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1936& 37 Faizpur
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose 23 January 1897- 18 August 1945? 1938 Haripura
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose 23 January 1897- 18 August 1945? 1939 Jabalpur
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad 1888- 22 February 1958 1940-46 Ramgarh
Acharya J.B. Kripalani 1888- 19 March 1982 1947 Delhi
Dr Pattabhi Sitaraimayya 24 December 1880- 17 December 1959 1948 & 49 Jaipur
Purushottam Das Tandon 1 August 1882- 1 July 1961 1950 Nasik
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1951 & 52 Delhi
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1953 Hyderabad
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1954 Kalyani
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1955 Avadi
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1956 Amritsar
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1957 Indore
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1958 Gauhati
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1959 Nagpur
Indira Gandhi 19 November 1917- 31 October 1984 1959 Delhi
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 19 May 1913- 1 June 1996 1960 Bangalore
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 19 May 1913- 1 June 1996 1961 Bhavnagar
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 19 May 1913- 1 June 1996 1962 & 63 Patna
K. Kamaraj 15 July 1903- 2 October 1975 1964 Bhubaneswar
K. Kamaraj 15 July 1903- 2 October 1975 1965 Durgapur
K. Kamaraj 15 July 1903- 2 October 1975 1966 & 67 Jaipur
S. Nijalingappa 10 December 1902- 9 August 2000 1968 Hyderabad
S. Nijalingappa 10 December 1902- 9 August 2000 1969 Faridabad
Jagjivan Ram 5 April 1908- 6 July 1986 1970 & 71 Bombay
Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma 19 August 1918- 26 December 1999 1972- 74 Calcutta
Dev Kant Baruah 22 February 1914- 1996 1975- 77 Chandigarh
Indira Gandhi 19 November 1917- 31 October 1984 1978- 83 Delhi
Indira Gandhi 19 November 1917- 31 October 1984 1983 -84 Calcutta
Rajiv Gandhi 20 August 1944- 21 May 1991 1985 -91 Bombay
P. V. Narasimha Rao 28 June 1921- 23 December 2004 1992 -96 Tirupati
Sitaram Kesri November 1919- 24 October 2000 1997 -98 Kolkata
Sonia Gandhi 9 December 1946- 1998–present Kolkata
In the early years the Congress had, however, no permanent organisation. " There were no paying members,no officials other than a general secretary, no central office, and no funds".Every Christmas a session was held in a different city with a different President, and it was managed by a local Reception Committee with locally collected funds. The Committee arranged the printing and distribution of the Congress proceedings after the session ended . Yet the Congress grew from strength to strength , acquiring a later significance in Indian political life and it was attended by a steadily growing number of delegates ;
72 in 1885, 434 in 1886, 607 in 1887, 1248 in 1888, and 1889 in 1889.
Name of President Life Span Year of Presidency Place of Conference
Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee 29 December 1844- 1906 1885 Bombay
Dadabhai Naoroji 4 September 1825- 1917 1886 Calcutta
Badruddin Tyabji 10 October 1844- 1906 1887 Madras
George Yule 1829–1892 1888 Allahabad
Sir William Wedderburn 1838–1918 1889 Bombay
Sir Pherozeshah Mehta 4 August 1845- 1915 1890 Calcutta
P. Anandacharlu August 1843- 1908 1891 Nagpur
Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee 29 December 1844- 1906 1892 Allahabad
Dadabhai Naoroji 4 September 1825- 1917 1893 Lahore
Alfred Webb 1834–1908 1894 Madras
Surendranath Banerjea 10 November 1848- 1925 1895 Pune
Rahimtulla M. Sayani 5 April 1847- 1902 1896 Calcutta
Sir C. Sankaran Nair 11 July 1857- 1934 1897 Amraoti
Ananda Mohan Bose 23 September 1847- 1906 1898 Madras
Romesh Chunder Dutt 13 August 1848- 1909 1899 Lucknow
Sir Narayan Ganesh Chandavarkar 2 December 1855- 1923 1900 Lahore
Sir Dinshaw Edulji Wacha 2 August 1844- 1936 1901 Calcutta
Surendranath Banerjea 10 November 1825- 1917 1902 Ahmedabad
Lalmohan Ghosh 1848–1909 1903 Madras
Sir Henry Cotton 1845–1915 1904 Bombay
Gopal Krishna Gokhale 9 May 1866- 1915 1905 Benares
Dadabhai Naoroji 4 September 1825- 1917 1906 Calcutta
Rashbihari Ghosh 23 December 1845- 1921 1907 Surat
Rashbihari Ghosh 23 December 1845- 1921 1908 Madras
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1909 Lahore
Sir William Wedderburn 1838–1918 1910 Allahabad
Pandit Bishan Narayan Dar 1864–1916 1911 Calcutta
Rao Bahadur Raghunath Narasinha Mudholkar 1857–1921 1912 Bankipur
Nawab Syed Muhammad Bahadur ?- 1919 1913 Karachi
Bhupendra Nath Bose 1859–1924 1914 Madras
Lord Satyendra Prasanna Sinha March 1863- 1928 1915 Bombay
Ambica Charan Mazumdar 1850–1922 1916 Lucknow
Annie Besant 1 October 1847- 1933 1917 Calcutta
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1918 Delhi
Syed Hasan Imam 31 August 1871- 1933 1918 Bombay (Special Session)
Pandit Motilal Nehru 6 May 1861- 6 February 1931 1919 Amritsar
Lala Lajpat Rai 28 January 1865- 17 November 1928 1920 Calcutta (Special Session)
C. Vijayaraghavachariar 1852- 19 April 1944 1920 Nagpur
Hakim Ajmal Khan 1863- 29 December 1927 1921 Ahmedabad
Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das 5 November 1870- 16 June 1925 1922 Gaya
Maulana Mohammad Ali 10 December 1878- 4 January 1931 1923 Kakinada
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad 1888- 22 February 1958 1923 Delhi (Special Session)
Mahatma Gandhi 2 October 1869- 30 January 1948 1924 Belgaum
Sarojini Naidu 13 February 1879- 2 March 1949 1925 Kanpur
S. Srinivasa Iyengar September 11, 1874- 19 May 1941 1926 Gauhati
Dr. M A Ansari 25 December 1880- 10 May 1936 1927 Madras
Pandit Motilal Nehru 6 May 1861- 6 February 1931 1928 Calcutta
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1929 & 30 Lahore
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel 31 October 1875- 15 December 1950 1931 Karachi
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1932 Delhi
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya 25 December 1861- 1946 1933 Calcutta
Nellie Sengupta 1886–1973 1933 Calcutta
Dr. Rajendra Prasad 3 December 1884- 28 February 1963 1934 & 35 Bombay
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1936 Lucknow
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1936& 37 Faizpur
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose 23 January 1897- 18 August 1945? 1938 Haripura
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose 23 January 1897- 18 August 1945? 1939 Jabalpur
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad 1888- 22 February 1958 1940-46 Ramgarh
Acharya J.B. Kripalani 1888- 19 March 1982 1947 Delhi
Dr Pattabhi Sitaraimayya 24 December 1880- 17 December 1959 1948 & 49 Jaipur
Purushottam Das Tandon 1 August 1882- 1 July 1961 1950 Nasik
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1951 & 52 Delhi
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1953 Hyderabad
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru 14 November 1889- 27 May 1964 1954 Kalyani
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1955 Avadi
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1956 Amritsar
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1957 Indore
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1958 Gauhati
U N Dhebar 21 September 1905- 1977 1959 Nagpur
Indira Gandhi 19 November 1917- 31 October 1984 1959 Delhi
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 19 May 1913- 1 June 1996 1960 Bangalore
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 19 May 1913- 1 June 1996 1961 Bhavnagar
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy 19 May 1913- 1 June 1996 1962 & 63 Patna
K. Kamaraj 15 July 1903- 2 October 1975 1964 Bhubaneswar
K. Kamaraj 15 July 1903- 2 October 1975 1965 Durgapur
K. Kamaraj 15 July 1903- 2 October 1975 1966 & 67 Jaipur
S. Nijalingappa 10 December 1902- 9 August 2000 1968 Hyderabad
S. Nijalingappa 10 December 1902- 9 August 2000 1969 Faridabad
Jagjivan Ram 5 April 1908- 6 July 1986 1970 & 71 Bombay
Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma 19 August 1918- 26 December 1999 1972- 74 Calcutta
Dev Kant Baruah 22 February 1914- 1996 1975- 77 Chandigarh
Indira Gandhi 19 November 1917- 31 October 1984 1978- 83 Delhi
Indira Gandhi 19 November 1917- 31 October 1984 1983 -84 Calcutta
Rajiv Gandhi 20 August 1944- 21 May 1991 1985 -91 Bombay
P. V. Narasimha Rao 28 June 1921- 23 December 2004 1992 -96 Tirupati
Sitaram Kesri November 1919- 24 October 2000 1997 -98 Kolkata
Sonia Gandhi 9 December 1946- 1998–present Kolkata
In the early years the Congress had, however, no permanent organisation. " There were no paying members,no officials other than a general secretary, no central office, and no funds".Every Christmas a session was held in a different city with a different President, and it was managed by a local Reception Committee with locally collected funds. The Committee arranged the printing and distribution of the Congress proceedings after the session ended . Yet the Congress grew from strength to strength , acquiring a later significance in Indian political life and it was attended by a steadily growing number of delegates ;
72 in 1885, 434 in 1886, 607 in 1887, 1248 in 1888, and 1889 in 1889.
