New Delhi: Margaret Alva, the joint candidate of the opposition for the Vice Presidential post, on Saturday hit out at some opposition parties for supporting the BJP in this election "directly or indirectly" and said it was an attempt to "derail" the idea of a united opposition.
Disappointed by the ‘lack of unity' among the opposition parties, Alva wrote: “This election was an opportunity for the opposition to work together, to leave the past behind and build trust amongst each other. Unfortunately, some opposition parties chose to directly or indirectly support the BJP, in an attempt to derail the idea of a united opposition. It is my belief that by doing so, these parties and their leaders have damaged their own credibility.”
In the results declared by the returning officer for the Vice Presidential election, he said NDA's vice-presidential nominee Jagdeep Dhankhar secured 528 votes over Opposition candidate Margaret Alva's 182, as reported by PTI.
Alva took to Twitter soon after the results were declared to extend her wishes to Dhankhar and wrote, “Congratulations to Mr Dhankhar on being elected Vice President! I would like to thank all the leaders of the Opposition, and MPs from across parties who voted for me in this election. Also, all the volunteers for their selfless service during our short but intense campaign.”
“This election is over. The battle for protecting our Constitution, strengthening our democracy & restoring the dignity of Parliament, will continue,” Alva said.
Jagdeep Dhankhar will take the oath of office on August 11, a day after the term of the incumbent Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu ends.