Vice-Presidential election 2017: Gopalkrishna Gandhi congratulates Venkaiah Naidu, says got votes beyond calculation

New Delhi: Opposition candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi congratulated his NDA rival nominee M Venkaiah Naidu who was elected India’s new Vice President on Saturday. [caption id=“attachment_3893939” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Gopalkrishna Gandhi. AFP[/caption] “I congratulate him on his victory. I wish him all the best,” Gandhi said, but added that the the number of votes he got was beyond certain calculations. He thanked the MPs, who comprise the electoral college of the vice-presidential election, and the parties who had nominated him as their candidate. He added: “The election saw two victories - one of Naidu, another of free speech; the second victory belongs to all the people of India.” “I believe the numbers voted for me are beyond expectation of certain calculations. They represent different political persuasions, they come from different political parties of India. And they have come together to vote for what they thought was for the nation’s good, which is the affirmation of the right to free thought, free speech, the right to hold a different opinion and the duty to serve cause of pluralism and secularism in India,” he said. Gandhi, who was candidate of Congress and some major opposition parties, got 244 votes compared to 516 received by Naidu.