Lalu confident of Pratibha Patils victory

Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav today expressed confidence that UPA-Left candidate Pratibha Patil will win the race for Rashtrapati Bhavan, even as the polling for the 13th presidential election is underway.

New Delhi/Imphal, July 19 : Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav today expressed confidence that UPA-Left candidate Pratibha Patil will win the race for Rashtrapati Bhavan, even as the polling for the 13th presidential election is underway.

"It has been decided... we have chosen her (Pratibha Patil) and cast our ballots. Although the voting is confidential, but the contestant we have supported and the report we have received from various assemblies across the country..." said Lalu.

There is a straight contest between Patil and NDA backed 'independent' candidate Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.

In New Delhi, several top leaders of the National Democratic Alliance turned up to cast their ballot.

In Manipur, over fifty percent of the legislators had cast their ballots by noon.

Awangbou Newmai, a legislator, said: "We have to elect the President of India who is going to hold the topmost post in our country. So we have to follow our conscience that who will be the right person... who will be the best person to lead our country in the next five years."

The polling started amidst tight security and strict vigil by the Election Commission in New Delhi and state capitals at 10 a.m.

The polling will conclude at 5 p.m.

Counting will take place on July 21, three days before incumbent APJ Abdul Kalam's term ends.

An Electoral College comprising of Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) will elect the President. There are 4,890 number of voters in the Electoral College and 10.98 lakh votes is the vote value of the Electoral College.

Fifty-eight MPs will vote in their state assemblies and not in the Parliament. They include Shiv Sena and Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) members.

The Election Commission has permitted 12 MLAs to vote in Delhi. Besides, 60 MPs and MLAs are presently in detention and will exercise their vote after seeking parole.

Members of the Electoral College are free to abstain from voting in the poll. For today's polls, the Samajwadi Party, Telugu Desam Party (TDP), All India Dravida Munnetra Khazgam (AIADMK), United National Progressive Alliance (UNPA) ally Asom Gana Parishad, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), Jharkhnad Vikas Morcha (JVM), Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK), the Deve Gowda-led Janta Dal (Secular) JD-S, Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), Trinamool, Mizo National Front (MNF), and S. Bangarappa have decided to stay away from polling.

Pratibha Patil is poised to have a smooth sailing, as she has the support of the UPA, the Left, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), Shiv Sena, and the National Conference.

Despite attempts to tarnish Pratibha's image with baseless charges, she seems to be a certain winner. She is said to have over 6.32 lakh votes in her favour, a lead of around 3.14 lakh votes over her rival.

On the other hand, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat in his corner has the BJP and NDA allies, and the Jammu and Kashmir's Panthers Party, excluding Trinamool Congress and Shiv Sena, the oldest NDA ally, which is supporting Pratibha.

The Karnataka unit of the BJP had earlier appealed to JD (S) to support Shekhawat. However, Deve Gowda's JD-S, whose son Kumaraswamy became Karanataka's Chief Minister with BJP support, is abstaining from the polls.

Apart from getting blow from JD (S), the BJP-led NDA got another shock after Mamtaa Banerjee's Trinamool Congress also decided to abstain.

Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy was the only President to be elected unopposed in 1977.

Rajendra Prasad, who was the first President, had the unique privilege of holding office twice in 1952 and 1957.

ANI