As many as 223 members of the Legislative Assembly (Halady Srinivas Shetty has resigned) and nine of the 40 MPs from the State cast their votes in the polling for the Presidential elections here on Thursday.
United Progressive Alliance candidate Pranab Mukherjee and National Democratic Alliance candidate P.A. Sangma are in a straight contest for the top post in the country.
Prominent among those, who voted at Vidhana Soudha were Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, Deputy Chief Ministers K.S. Eshwarappa and R. Ashok, Speaker K.G. Bopaiah, the former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) president H.D. Deve Gowda, his son and State unit president H.D. Kumaraswamy, Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Siddaramaiah and KPCC president G. Parameshwara.
Social Welfare Minister A. Narayanaswamy was the first person to cast his vote at 10 a.m. and Chandra Nayak of the BJP was the last legislator to come to the polling booth. Shivanagowda Nayak was looking confused as to the manner in which to cast his vote and sought the help of the officers.
Bharatiya Janata Party Rajya Sabha Member Prabhakar Kore, who was to vote here, cast it in New Delhi. Before 11 a.m., the time fixed for the commencement of the Legislative Assembly session, 60 per cent of the voters had exercised their franchise.
Though the entry of unauthorised persons were strictly prohibited near the polling booth, a large number of Congress workers came with Mr. Krishna and trooped into the area obstructing the election officials.
Assembly Secretary Om Prakasha, who is also the Assistant Returning Officer, supervised the sealing of the ballot box containing the ballot papers and sent it to the Secretary-General of the Lok Sabha, in whose presence the ballot papers would be counted on July 21.
