New Delhi:- The stage is set for a direct contest between ruling NDA candidate CP Radhakrishnan and opposition joint candidate B. Sudarshan Reddy for the Vice-Presidential election tomorrow. The BJP-led alliance has a clear advantage in the elections.
On Tuesday, members of both houses of Parliament will cast their votes from 10 am to 5 pm in the Parliament House. The counting of votes will begin at 6 pm and the results will be announced late in the evening. In the Vice-Presidential election, MPs are not bound by party whips to vote under the secret ballot system.
Groups of the BJP-led NDA and the Congress-led opposition held separate meetings and conducted mock polling to sensitize their respective MPs about the election process.
The MPs will be given ballot papers bearing the names of both the candidates and they will have to indicate their preference by writing the number '1' next to the name of the candidate of their choice. The rules for the Vice-Presidential elections state, "The numbers may be indicated in the international form of Indian numerals or in the Roman form or in the form used in any Indian language, but shall not be expressed in words."
A total of 788 members are eligible to vote for the Vice-Presidential election, including 245 from the Rajya Sabha and 543 from the Lok Sabha. 12 nominated members of the Rajya Sabha are also eligible to vote in the election.
The current strength of the Electoral College is 781 as six seats in the Rajya Sabha and one seat in the Lok Sabha are vacant. This makes the majority mark 391. The NDA has 425 MPs, while the opposition has the support of 324.