What’s so special about Pranab Mukherjee becoming President? A hint came from what the leader himself said during his presidential campaign in Agartala. “Though the President’s post is virtually the constitutional head of the country, it plays a very vital role during complicated political situations.”

It was a brief remark, but a rare one from a cautious veteran of many political battles. And political observers are already speculating what it might mean to have a hardcore politician with an independent base in Rashtrapati Bhavan after so many years.

It has been a long hiatus, during which the house on Raisina Hill has been occupied by a missile man (APJ Abdul Kalam), a former diplomat (K R Narayanan) and a low-key career politician ( Pratibha Patil). Earlier Presidents who came from the Congress, such as R Venkataraman and V V Giri, held office in the days of single-party rule. Mukherjee’s presidency comes in the era of coalitions.

As a Congress leader said: “Mukherjee is one man who has spent 50 years in politics and could have been the Prime Minister. This sets him apart.”

How a “political president” will impact the presidency is anybody’s guess. The spotlight invariably shifts to the high office after every LS election because no party is expected to get a majority. But controversies have been rare. In recent years, the scope for a “creative presidency” has been circumscribed by well-settled precedents and intense public scrutiny. For instance, no President can ignore the claim of the largest pre-poll coalition to form government. Kalam, whose presidency was backed by NDA, lost no time in inviting Sonia Gandhi to form government in 2004. And, as his autobiography revealed, there were no reservations about swearing in the Italian-born Congress chief either.

Similarly, S D Sharma —a Congress veteran—invited A B Vajpayee to form his 13-day government, despite the controversy over the decision. But the present state of political flux can throw up situations that the founding fathers could not have conceived six decades ago. Here, a President who knows his politics and Constitution —or has a political grudge—can turn the textbook notion of a “ceremonial presidency” on its head. After all, Zail Singh was able to rattle PM Rajiv Gandhi, who commanded a brute majority in LS but led a fractious Congress. He simply sat over the Postal Bill, pre-empting a second recommendation that would have forced him to give his assent.

Clearly, the President’s job can be as tricky as it is ceremonial. Mukherjee’s elevation is seen as crucial with Lok Sabha polls slated for 2014. If Congress loses, it would like to believe that it has a veteran leader with a handle over the government. But, this does not mean Congress has a sure advantage.

Despite the bonhomie on display, many believe Mukherjee may not be as beholden to his party as it may appear. After all, Congress had reservations about fulfilling Mukherjee’s wish, but a complex chain of events forced its hand.