Missile Man a force for religious harmony

Abdul Kalam came to fame across India as the chief architect of India's nuclear bomb program

NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- He is known as India's "Missile Man," and "the father of India's bomb."

For much of his 30-year career as the government's chief scientific advisor and head of India's nuclear missile program, Abdul Kalam led a largely anonymous life.

That was until May 1998, when he shot to fame as the man who oversaw India's nuclear tests.

Now he can claim the title of India presisent.

He's the first man from the defense establishment to take the post normally reserved for politicians.

At a time of heightened tensions with neighboring nuclear rival Pakistan, the Indian government's choice of candidate seemed a little surprising.

CNN NewsPass VIDEO CNN's Ram Ramgopal reports that A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the next president of India, is a Muslim well-versed in Hindu scriptures and a scientist who believes in nuclear deterrence. Play video

Kalam was born to Muslim parents, although he does not describe himself as Muslim. He reads Hindu scriptures each day and is a vegetarian.

Kalam's Muslim background is significant, given his nomination comes at a time when the Vajpayee's National Democratic Alliance coalition is under fire for being anti-Muslim.

The accusations stem from the government's failure to halt sectarian rioting in the western state of Gujarat in which at least 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, have been killed.

Opposition parties and human rights groups say the chief minister of Gujarat, a member of Vajpayee's party, did nothing to halt the violence and may actually have given his support to it.

Vajpayee himself has refused to order the chief minister to stand down, but the charges have hit the government's popularity and placed strains on the coalition.

By nominating a man with a Muslim background, and one who is highly regarded across India, some analysts say the government was trying to repair its battered image and deliver a presidential election free from political rivalries.

No first lady

Soldiers survey the site of India's 1998 nuclear tests

Two other Muslims have held the presidency before.

When asked about who would act as his first lady, the unmarried Kalam waved his hands and said, "No, no, I'm a brahmacharya." The Hindu word means someone who has given up worldly pleasures, including sex and marriage.

Kalam enjoys Indian classical music and is an accomplished player of the veena, a sitar-like stringed instrument.

The Indian president is elected once every five years by members of parliament.

The post is largely ceremonial with few direct powers.

However, the president can veto laws proposed by the government and most significantly in an election like the past three, where no party wins a majority, the president gets to choose which party forms the government.