VP polls: Sachin, Rekha cast their votes

New Delhi, Aug. 7 (ANI): Newly nominated members of the Rajya Sabha, master blaster Sachin Tendulkar and veteran actress Rekha, cast their votes on Tuesday to choose India's 14th vice president.

Prominent among those who exercised their franchise in Parliament included Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, BJP leaders L K Advani and Sushma Swaraj and other dignitaries.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Shukla said that Sachin and Rekha would be attending the Parliament tomorrow on the first day of the Monsoon Session.

Voting, which began at 10 a.m., will end at 5 p.m. The Election Commission has made elaborate arrangements for the smooth conduct of the poll.

Incumbent Vice President Hamid Ansari completes his tenure on Friday.

UPA's vice presidential candidate Ansari has the committed support of the Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam (DMK), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), CPM, National Conference and several others.

Jaswant Singh has the support of the BJP, the Janata Dal-United, the Shiv Sena, the Akali Dal, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and several other smaller parties.

The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Odisha has announced that it would abstain from voting in the vice-presidential election.

The vice president is elected through a direct ballot with Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members (including nominated) comprising the electoral college.

A total of 790 MPs are eligible to cast their votes today to elect the 14th vice president.(ANI)