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New Delhi, July 20 (IANS): Ram Nath Kovind, a Dalit BJP leader with humble beginnings, was on Thursday elected the 14th President of India defeating UPA candidate Meira Kumar in a straight fight by a huge margin, becoming the first BJP leader and one with RSS background to occupy Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Backed by 40 parties, including those outside the ruling NDA, Kovind, 62, a former MP and Bihar Governor, defeated Meira Kumar with a margin of a vote value of 334,730.
He got 2,930 votes carrying a value of 700,244 while the former Lok Sabha Speaker secured 1,844 votes with a value of 367,314, the highest vote value recorded by any losing candidate in all the Presidential elections held so far.
While Kovind got 65.65 per cent of the total valid votes with a value of 10,69,358, Meira Kumar got 34.35 per cent. MPs and MLAs are eligible to vote in the Presidential election. Of the votes of MPs, Kovind got 522 compared to 225 by Meira Kumar.
He will be the second Dalit President after K.R. Narayanan, who had occupied the office between 1997 and 2002. Kovind, who was the national spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), headed the party's Scheduled Caste Morcha for three years from 1999. He was actively associated with the RSS before joining the BJP.
Kovind, who practiced law in High Courts and the Supreme Court, said in his victory message that his election reflects the greatness of Indian democracy. He pledged to protect the Constitution and uphold its values and dedicated himself to work for the happiness of all sections.
Obviously tracing his roots, the President-elect said he represented all the hardworking people like the farm workers, labourers and poor and his election was a message to those people who earn their livelihood with hard work and honesty.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP chief Amit Shah, Union Ministers and leaders of allied parties congratulated Kovind on his victory. "Best wishes for a fruitful and inspiring tenure," Modi tweeted.