Odisha Congress MLA votes for Draupadi Murmu
Congress MLA from Odisha Mohammed Moquim defied his party and voted in favour of NDA candidate Draupadi Murmu saying, "It"s my personal decision as I"ve listened to my heart."
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New Delhi, July 19: In a significant development, Odisha Congress MLA from Cuttack-Barabati Mohammed Moquim voted for NDA's candidate Draupadi Murmu in the Presidential election 2022.
After casting his vote for Murmu, it was his personal decision. "I am a Congress MLA but I have voted for NDA's Presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu. It's my personal decision as I've listened to my heart which guided me to do something for the soil and that's why voted for her," he said.
Reports suggest that Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee Chief Sarat Pattanayak stated that the matter will be taken up with the party high command and appropriate action will be taken against Mohammed Moquim. It is notable here that Congress has only 9 MLAs and only 1 MP in the state. Moquim is the MLA from Barabati-Cuttack constituency.
Last month, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had appealed to State MLAs, across party lines, to vote in favour of Draupadi Murmu. In a tweet, he said, “Appeal all the members of Odisha Legislative Assembly, cutting across party lines, to extend unanimous support to elect the daughter of Odisha – Smt Draupadi Murmu to the country’s highest office.”
Meanwhile, in Assam, All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) MLA Karim Uddin Barbhuiya claimed that some Congress members had "cross-voted" in Presidential elections. Barbhuiya said the number of Congress MLAs who voted for Murmu could be 20.
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"There was a Congress meeting yesterday, it was attended by only two-three MLAs. Only district president was there. What was the need for a meeting in Assembly? Clear that Congress is cross-voting, it may be 20 plus. You can see numbers on the day of result," Barbhuiya said.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA from Gujarat Kandhal Jadeja said he voted for Murmu. Speaking to reporters after casting his vote today, the lone NCP MLA in Gujarat said that he voted for the NDA presidential candidate. NCP has lent it support to Yashwant Sinha.
The polling for Presidential election concluded at 5 pm on Monday. The polling was held in a peaceful and orderly manner at all designated places.