New Delhi, Ramadan 3, 1433, Jul 22, 2012, SPA - Pranab Mukherjee, the ruling party candidate in India's presidential election took a comfortable lead over his main rival during the counting of votes Sunday, according to a report of DPA. India's parliament and state legislative assemblies had cast their ballots on July 19 to elect the nation's 13th president. Former finance minister Mukherjee, 76, of the Indian National Congress Party, secured 527 or over 70 per cent of the 748 MPs votes, officials said. Mukherjee's tally was more than double of the 206 votes bagged by his rival Purno Agitok Sangma, 64, a former parliament speaker backed by opposition Bharatiya Janata Party. The counting of votes from state assemblies was underway and the final results were expected by Sunday evening, officials at the counting room at the Parliament House said. The new president will take over from Pratibha Patil, the first woman to hold the post, who completes her five-year term on July 25. --SPA 13:56 LOCAL TIME 10:56 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/1017239