M Venkaiah Naidu is India's next Vice President

M Venkaiah Naidu will be the 13th person to hold the country's second highest Constitutional post Naidu secured 516 votes, while opposition candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi secured 244 votes  The term of incumbent Vice President Hamid Ansari will come to an end on August 10

NDA candidate and former union minister M Venkaiah Naidu was elected as the 13th Vice President of India on Saturday.

Naidu secured over two-thirds of votes, leaving opposition candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi far behind. Naidu got 516 votes out of total 771 votes cast, while Gandhi could only manage 244 votes.

Although 785 MPs are there in both the Houses of Parliament, 14 MPs could not vote. And of the total 771 votes polled, 11 were found to be invalid. 

Naidu will be the 13th person to hold the country's second highest Constitutional post. The term of incumbent Vice President Hamid Ansari, who held the position for two consecutive terms, will come to an end on August 10.

"Coming from an agricultural background, I never imagined I would be here. Agriculture has no proper voice in Indian polity," PTI quoted Naidu as saying. 

"I am very humbled. I am also thankful to the Prime Minister and all party leaders for their support. I will seek to utilise the vice presidential institution to strengthen the hands of the president and secondly uphold the dignity of the Upper House," India's vice president-elect added. 

The strength of the electoral college comprising both elected and nominated MPs of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha is 790. While there are two vacancies in the LS, three seats are vacant in the RS also. One BJP Lok Sabha MP is barred from voting following a judicial pronouncement. 

In the 2007 VP poll, incumbent Hamid Ansari had polled 456 votes, Najma Heptullah 222 votes and Rashid Masood 075 votes. In the 2012 polls, Ansari had bagged 490 and NDA nominee Jaswant Singh 238 votes.