Prez poll: 198 of 200 MLAs in R'than cast vote

Jaipur, July 18 A total of 198 MLAs out of 200 in Rajasthan cast their vote in the 16th Presidential election on Monday.

Bhartiya Tribal Party MLA Rajkumar Roat and Congress MLA Bhanwar Lal Sharma did not turn up for voting.

While Sharma is unwell, Roat's son is not well.

NDA Presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu is contesting the election against Opposition's nominee Yashwant Sinha.

After voting, the ballot box and other election material were sent to Delhi amid tight security, said Chief Electoral Officer Praveen Gupta.

He said that the voting process was completed in a confidential manner. The guidelines of the Election Commission of India were ensured during the voting.

Along with this, the Covid guidelines were also followed. Special security arrangements were made in and outside the polling premises.

Gupta said that after the conclusion of polling, the ballot box containing the ballot paper was sealed under the supervision of the observer appointed by the Election Commission, Rakesh Kumar Verma, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, and in presence of the representatives of the presidential candidates.

MLAs Rajendra Rathod, Jogeshwar Garg and Ramlal Sharma were present on behalf of NDA Presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu while MLAs Mahendra Chaudhary and Amit Chachan were present on behalf of Opposition's nominee Yashwant Sinha, Gupta said.

The Chief Electoral Officer added that after the voting, the sealed ballot box and other election materials were airlifted to Parliament House, Delhi along with other officials including Assistant Returning Officer Dr. Jogaram and Vinod Mishra.

"The voting process was conducted in a peaceful and orderly manner as per the guidelines given by the Commission," he said, adding the counting of votes will be held on July 21 at 11 a.m. at the Parliament House.

The polling for the 16th Presidential election in the Rajasthan Assembly premises began in Jaipur at 10 a.m. with Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot among early voters.

The government's chief whip in the Assembly, Mahesh Joshi, also reached there to cast his vote.

Till 5.45 p.m. on Monday evening, 198 MLAs had cast their vote.

The polling ended at 5 p.m.

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