The anticipated outcome was announced by Lok Sabha Secretary General TK Viswanathan, the returning officer for the poll, minutes after the counting of votes ended yesterday evening.

Best man for the job: Hamid Ansari has served as the country’s vice-president since 2007. He is a distinguished scholar and a seasoned diplomat. A former ambassador to the UAE, Afghanistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia, Ansari also worked as vice-chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University and chairman of the National Minorities Commission.u00a0Ansari was in contention for the UPA’s presidential candidacy before Pranab Mukherjee was chosen as the nominee. File Pic