A Akhter / New Delhi
Special arrangements have been made at Parliament House for the election of the Vice President of India. The voting to elect the next Vice President will be held tomorrow August 5th . There is a straight fight between NDA’s candidate M Venkaiah Naidu and Opposition nominee Gopalkrishna Gandhi.
Mr Naidu has served as the Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs and Information and Broadcasting in the Narendra Modi Cabinet.
Gopalkrishna Gandhi is the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. A former IAS officer, Mr Gandhi also served as Governor of West Bengal.
Voting will conclude at 5:00 PM and counting will take place thereafter.
The Vice President is elected by an electoral college comprising members of both the Houses of Parliament including nominated members. It is different from the election of the President as the members of state legislatures are not part of the electoral college.
Though the election is through a secret ballot, the parties cannot issue a whip to their members to vote for a particular candidate. In 790 member electoral college, NDA nominee Mr Naidu has a clear edge over his rival Gopal Krishna Gandhi.
Some Non NDA Parties including TRS and AIADMK have also extended their support to Mr Naidu. The term of present incumbent Hamid Ansari comes to an end on the 10th of this month.
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