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The voting for the presidential polls 2022 that saw a face off between NDA nominee Droupadi Murmu and Opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha got over ta the parliament tat 5 pm on 18 July. A total turnout of 99.18% was reported at Parliament on Monday, said chief returning officer PC Mody. He further stated that the ballot boxes will arrive in Parliament from across the country by the end of the day.
“Ballot boxes to reach Delhi via road and air; assistant returning officers will accompany them," said Returning Officer for presidential poll PC Mody.
The elections saw the presence of several union ministers including former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on wheelchair. The voting was also boycotted by the Shiromani Akali Dal citing 'Sikh sentiments'.
“Out of 736 electors (727 MPs and nine MLAs) permitted by the Election Commissioner of India to vote in Parliament, 730 (721 MPs and nine MLAs) voted," Mody said.
The term of office of President Ram Nath Kovind is ending on July 24.
Former Jharkhand Governor Droupadi Murmu is the NDA candidate, while former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha is contesting as a joint Opposition candidate for the top post.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Ministers Amit Shah, Anurag Thakur, Piyush Goyal were among the first to cast their votes in the Parliament House. The counting of the votes will be taken up on Thursday.
Union Ministers Mansukh Mandaviya, Hardeep Singh Puri, Samajwadi Party's Mulayam Singh Yadav and NCP chief Sharad Pawar cast their votes for the Presidential polls in Delhi.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, Congress MP Randeep Singh Surjewala and Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan cast their votes for the Presidential polls in Delhi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first to cast his vote in Parliament as voting for the presidential election began on Monday in which NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu is pitted against joint opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha.
Ahead of the commencement of the Monsoon Session of the Parliament, 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.
The Prime Minister also briefed about the upcoming Presidential and Vice-Presidential polls.
He said, "This Session is also important because elections for the office of President and Vice President are taking place right now. Voting (for the Presidential election) is taking place today. During this period, the new President and Vice President will begin guiding the nation."
The Presidential Election is being held today while the Vice Presidential election will be held on 6 August.