New Delhi: PM Narendra Modi on Monday morning cast his vote for the Presidential elections. Former PM of India, Manmohan Singh was also seen at the polling booth set up on the first floor of the Parliament House. About 350 electors including the PM of India cast their vote in the first 1.5 hours of the Presidential poll, sources in the know said.
Ahead of the commencement of the Monsoon Session of the Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday urged all members of Parliament to make the session fruitful and productive by holding discussions and debates with an open mind.
“There should be dialogue in the Parliament with an open mind, if necessary, there should be a debate. I urge all MPs to contemplate deeply and discuss matters to make this session as fruitful and productive as possible,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Parliament.
NDAs presidential pick, Draupadi Murmu backed by the BJP is all set to have a comfortable win as speculated. If elected she will be the first tribal President and the second female to take charge of the post since Independence. Former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha – who is also contesting for the post seems a strong competition for Murmu.
The counting of the votes will take place on July 21st and the 15th President of India would take oath on July 25th. Rajya Sabha Gen Secretay has been entitled as the Returning Officer for this election.
According to Election Commission’s directions, while MPs will get a green-coloured ballot paper, the MLAs will get a pink ballot paper to cast their vote. Separate colours help the returning officer ascertain the value of the vote of each MLA and MP. Seeking to maintain the secrecy of voting, the EC has issued a specially designed pen with violet ink to enable voters to mark their ballot papers in the presidential poll.
It must be noted that the polls to elect the President and Vice President of India are cast through EVMs. Instead, ballot boxes are deployed in accordance with the system of proportional representation.