Pratibha Patil headed for landslide victory

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New Delhi: The counting for the coveted post of President of India began on Saturday morning and even at this early stage, it seems as if the country is all set for its first woman Head of State.

UPA-Left Presidential nominee Pratibha Patil took an early lead when she bagged 223 votes in Andhra Pradesh -- a huge lead over NDA-backed independent candidate Bhairon Singh Shekhawat who got only two votes in the state. The value of one MLA's vote in Andhra Pradesh is 148.

In New Delhi, Prathibha Patil received 50 votes, while Shekhawat managed 19 and in while in Assam, Patil got 92 votes and Shekhawat, 20. In the state of Arunachal Pradesh, she bagged 58 votes while Shekhawat got just one vote.

In Haryana, Pratibha Patil got 74 votes while Shekhawat got 7. Likewise in Goa she received 25 votes and Shekhawat got 14 and in Himachal Pradesh she got 47 votes to Shekhawat's 20.

However, in Gujarat, where nine BJP MLAs cross-voted, Pratibha Patil received 57 votes while Shekhawat got 123. In Chattisgarh too, Shekhawat was leading with 51 votes to Pratibha's 37.

Patil is expected to win by over 2.5 lakh votes. She bore the brunt of a vicious campaign but with the UPA-Left solidly backing her, her victory has been a foregone conclusion.

She had additional support from the Shiv Sena and abstention by some key NDA allies like the Trinamool Congress and the JD(S) increased her victory margin.

With a divided NDA, it became difficult for Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat to influence voters across the political divide.

The first ballot box was opened at the counting centre at Parliament House by Returning Officer P D T Achary in the presence of Union Minister P R Dasmunsi and Satyapal Jain --- the election agents of Patil and NDA-backed independent nominee Bhairon Singh Shekhawat respectively.

The name of the successor to A P J Abdul Kalam is expected to be announced by 1400 hrs IST on Saturday, Lok Sabha sources were quoted by news agency PTI as saying.

The sealed ballot boxes were brought by Indian flights to the Capital from capitals of states and union territories where MLAs and some MPs exercised their franchise on Friday.

A total of 682 MPs and 3,755 MLAs cast their ballots and seven states and union territories registered a 100 per cent turnout.

The counting is the climax in a month-long bitter campaign, which saw the worst mud-slinging in the run up to choose the successor to A P J Abdul Kalam. Polling was conducted in Parliament House amidst tight security and strict vigil by the Election Commission, which gave a series of stringent instructions for voters to follow.

Hope Dims For Shekhawat

Hope floats, but not for Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat with his dream of becoming the President is nearing a sad end.

He became an independent to shed off his saffron leanings and get votes from non-NDA parties.

In the end, though, the NDA itself is not united in backing him. Shiv Sena, the oldest NDA ally is supporting the UPA nominee Pratibha Patil.

Deve Gowda's JD(S), whose son Kumaraswamy became Karanataka's Chief Minister with BJP support, is abstaining from the polls.

Meanwhile, Mamtaa Banerjee's Trinamool Congress has also decided to abstain from the voting, saying Shekhawat is not their first choice.

The TRS which walked out of the UPA last year, is also unwilling to back Shekhawat.

(With inputs from PTI)

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