The President of India is indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of the elected members of both houses of parliament, the elected members of the Legislative assemblies of the 28 states and the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Delhi and Puducherry.

How the President is Elected in India

In India, the President is elected by an Electoral College, which consists of the elected members of both houses of Parliament (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) and the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the states. The President is the ceremonial head of state and the highest constitutional authority in the country. The process of electing the President involves several steps and follows a specific procedure.

Qualifications for President
- To be eligible for the position of President, a candidate must be a citizen of India, at least 35 years of age, and should be qualified to be a member of the Lok Sabha.
- A person holding any office of profit under the Government of India or the government of any state, or any local or other authority subject to the control of any of these governments, is not eligible to be a candidate for the presidency.

Nomination of Candidates
- The election process begins with the nomination of candidates. Any citizen of India who meets the prescribed qualifications can be nominated as a candidate for the presidency.
- To be nominated, a candidate must have the support of at least 50 electors as proposers and 50 electors as seconders.
- The nomination papers are scrutinized by the Returning Officer, who ensures that the candidates meet all the eligibility criteria.

Electoral College and Voting
- The Electoral College consists of the elected members of both houses of Parliament and the state Legislative Assemblies. The total value of votes of all the members of the Electoral College is determined based on the population of each state.
- Each member of the Electoral College casts a vote, which is called an electoral vote. The voting is conducted through a secret ballot.
- The value of each vote is calculated using a formula that takes into account the population of the state and the number of elected representatives from that state.

Election Process
- The President is elected through the system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote.
- The voting is conducted in accordance with the system of proportional representation, where each voter ranks the candidates in order of preference.
- If no candidate receives more than 50% of the total valid votes in the first round, the candidate with the lowest number of votes is eliminated, and the second preference votes of their supporters are transferred to the remaining candidates.
- This process continues until one candidate secures more than 50% of the votes and is declared the winner.

Announcement of Results
- Once the voting is completed, the ballot papers are counted, and the results are tabulated.
- The candidate who receives the majority of the valid votes is declared elected as the President of India.
- The Chief Election Commissioner announces the name of the elected President.

Conclusion
The process of electing the President in India is a complex one, involving the participation of the members of both houses of Parliament and the state Legislative Assemblies. The Electoral College ensures representation from all parts of the country, and the election is conducted through a system of proportional representation. The President, once elected, serves as the head of state and plays a crucial role in the governance of the country.