Voting for father a rare privilege, says son

Abhijit Mukherjee, Congress MLA, said he had the rare privilege on Thursday of voting for his father in a presidential election.

“It is a rare opportunity [for me] as an MLA to vote for my father in the Presidential elections. I am feeling very good and elated,” Abhijit told The Hindu after casting his vote for the UPA candidate, Pranab Mukherjee, in the West Bengal Assembly.

“Father and son together have voted for the same candidate.”

Thanking the Trinamool Congress for supporting his father’s candidature, he said he was elated that the maximum number of votes from his home State would go in favour of his father.

On the Trinamool’s initial reservations, he said: “The Trinamool Congress never said that it will vote against Pranab Mukherjee. All that it said was its first preference was A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.”

Abhijit, who met Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the Secretariat on Wednesday, said he would invite her to the family residence when his father visited the State after being elected President.