Vice-President Election 2022: Around 93 per cent of MPs vote in poll

India

oi-Prakash KL

New
Delhi,
Aug
06:
Around
93
per
cent
polling
was
recorded
in
the
vice
presidential
election
on
Saturday,
with
more
than
50
MPs
not
exercising
their
franchise.
Officials
said
of
the
total
780
MPs,
as
many
as
725
MPs
voted
till
5
pm
when
the
polling
concluded.

Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
and
his
predecessor
Manmohan
Singh
cast
their
ballots
early
in
the
day,
while
opposition
leaders
Sonia
Gandhi
and
Rahul
Gandhi
voted
a
little
after
noon,
the
officials
said.
The
Trinamool
Congress,
which
has
39
MPs,
including
23
in
Lok
Sabha,
has
already
announced
its
decision
to
abstain
from
the
election.

However,
two
of
its
MPs
—
Sisir
Kumar
Adhikari
and
Dibyendu
Adhikari
—
broke
ranks
and
cast
their
ballots.
Polling
to
elect
the
next
Vice
President
of
India
began
at
10
am,
with
Modi
being
among
the
first
ones
to
vote.

Former
Prime
Minister
Manmohan
Singh
arrived
in
a
wheelchair
and
needed
support
to
stand
up
and
vote.
CPM
MP
John
Brittas
was
among
those
who
helped
the
veteran
leader
in
exercising
his
franchise.

The
two-term
former
prime
minister
greeted
those
present
with
folded
hands.
Home
Minister
Amit
Shah,
Defence
Minister
Rajnath
Singh,
BJP
president
J
P
Nadda,
Education
Minister
Dharmendra
Pradhan,
and
Commerce
Minister
and
Leader
of
House
in
Rajya
Sabha
Piyush
Goyal
were
among
the
leaders
who
turned
up
early
at
the
Parliament
House.

Congress
MP
Abhishek
Singhvi,
who
has
contracted
COVID-19,
voted
wearing
a
PPE
kit.
“Satisfied
that
I
could
perform
my
duties
as
a
third
term
parliamentarian
in
the
#VP
elections,
even
if
in
extraterrestrial
attire!”
he
tweeted.
While
two
BJP
MPs
—
Sunny
Deol
and
Sanjay
Dhotre
—
did
not
vote,
among
the
prominent
opposition
MPs
who
were
absent
during
voting
included
Mulayam
Singh
Yadav
and
Shafiqur
Rahman
Barq
(both
Samajwadi
Party).

The
counting
of
votes
will
begin
at
6
pm.
With
the
ruling
BJP
having
an
absolute
majority
in
the
Lok
Sabha
and
91
members
in
the
Rajya
Sabha,
Dhankhar
has
a
clear
edge
over
his
rival.
He
is
likely
to
succeed
incumbent
M
Venkaiah
Naidu,
whose
tenure
ends
on
August
10.

All
MPs
of
the
Lok
Sabha
and
the
Rajya
Sabha,
including
nominated
members,
are
entitled
to
vote
in
the
vice
presidential
election.
The
two
Houses
of
Parliament
together
have
a
sanctioned
strength
of
788
MPs,
of
which
there
are
eight
vacancies
in
the
Upper
House.