Ram Nath Kovind continues using the buggy: Story behind President's royal ride

Ditching a lavish car, brand-new Indian President Ram Nath Kovind took the historic buggy ride from Rashtrapati Bhavan to Parliament for his the oath-taking ceremony today.

Outgoing President Pranab Mukherjee was seated on the left side of the buggy and the new president on his right. On their way back, once Kovind has taken his oath, the two will exchange seats, leaving Mukherjee on the right and Kovind on the left.

This buggy has interesting history at its tail. Here's where it comes from:

WHERE DID THE BUGGY COME FROM?

The gold-plated, horse-drawn buggy originally belonged to the Viceroy of India during the British era. How it remained in India after Independence is a story that will make many happy.

After the partition, both India and Pakistan wanted the fancy buggy, and there was no longer a higher power to sort this quarrel.

So, what did they do to sort the dispute?

Simple. They did what cricket captains do these days. They tossed.

Lt Col Thakur Govind Singh from India and Pakistan Army's Sahabzada Yaqub Khan let the responsibility of the buggy ownership rest on a coin.

Guess who won the toss?

Of course, India did. And here we are, after all these years, still using the old gal to flaunt around our newly-elected presidents.

BUGGY'S USE | After 1984, the buggy was not frequently used by any president for a few decades. While they did use it now and then, it was properly used again in 2014 by Pranab Mukherjee.

Earlier, the gold-plated buggy was used by the president not only for ceremonial purposes, but also to move around in his 320-acre residential space.

Over the years, as the president's security grew tighter, the use of the buggy lessened, limited to ceremonial formalities at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

However, with President Mukherjee's term, the buggy was brought back into action. Hopefully, President Kovind will continue this tradition.