Indian presidential election: Voting begins

Ram Nath Kovind or Meira Kumar? Who will be India’s next President? 776 MPs and 4120 MLAs will decide in a secret ballot vote on Monday.

The voting began at 10 am and will conclude by 5 pm. Counting will be held on July 20 at 11 am.

As things stand, Kovind is likely to sweep the election with 70 per cent of the electoral college backing him. However, political parties cannot issue a whip to their members to vote for a particular nominee which means that cross-voting is possible.

Despite the former Bihar Governor’s dominant position, Opposition’s pick Meira Kumar left no stone unturned to gain support from political parties. The former Lok Sabha Speaker met with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday at his residence to seek support of the Aam Aadmi Party.

The contest which is largely being viewed as a clash between two Dalit leaders, was described by Kumar as an “ideological battle”.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Sunday sought for “a vote of conscience” and described the contest as “a clash of ideas and a conflict of disparate values”.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after the all party-meet, on Sunday in Parliament, described the elections as “historic” and adding that it is the first time no political party has made “futile statements on the Presidential candidate of another party”.

“Every party has respected the dignity of the election. This is the maturity of our democracy. Now, we have to make sure no vote goes to waste,” the Prime Minister said on Twitter.

Source: The Indian Express