He was born in a Muslim family in Calcutta, British India. Though his family belongs to Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh.He is the grand nephew of former Congress President Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari who was also a leader of the Indian Independence Movement.After completing his education, he started preparing for the Civil Services and in 1961, he cleared the UPSC Examination and was allotted the Indian Foreign Service (IFS).After retiring from foreign service, Ansari served in various academic positions.In 2006, he had to quit the membership of Congress Party after the Congress party selected him as its candidate for the vice-presidential elections.In 2007, he won the vice-presidential elections by defeating his nearest rival, Najma Heptullah of BJP, with a margin of 233 votes.In 2012, he again defeated the BJP nominee Jaswant Singh by 252 votes for the another term as the Vice President of India.Ansari is known for his role ensuring relief and compensation for the 2002 Gujarat riots Victims.With his several years of diplomatic postings in the Middle East countries, he developed a reputation as a scholar of that region.