Hamid Ansari re-elected as vice-president

India's Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari speaks during the national communal harmony awards ceremony in New Delhi August 12, 2009.

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Hamid Ansari has been re-elected as India's vice-president, a government official said on Tuesday.

A nominee of the ruling Congress-led alliance, the 75-year-old Ansari defeated opposition-backed rival Jaswant Singh by 252 votes for the largely ceremonial post.

An electoral college of members of parliament elects the vice-president, who also acts as chairperson of the Rajya Sabha.

"I declare Hamid Ansari as duly elected to the office of the vice-president of India," T. K. Viswanathan, the returning officer for the poll, told reporters.

Of the 736 votes cast, Ansari got 490 votes while Jaswant Singh got 238. Eight votes were declared invalid.

Ansari, a former diplomat and academic, first became vice-president of India in 2007.

He previously headed the National Commission for Minorities, a body set up to protect the rights of minorities.

Ansari was also India's envoy to the United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Australia and the country's permanent representative to the United Nations, according to his official bio-data.

He is a former vice-chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University and a recipient of the country's prestigious civilian award, the Padma Shri.

In July, former finance minister and UPA nominee Pranab Mukherjee was elected to the ceremonial post of president.

(Writing by Tony Tharakan; Editing by David Lalmalsawma)