Bengaluru: A viral video clipping of a news program aired on Kannada news channel, Asianet Suvarna set off firestorm on social media after it allegedly depicted Indian Muslims using a Pakistan flag, during its reportage on the EAC-PM report.

The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM), which in its study titled "Share of religious minorities: A cross-country analysis," claimed that the Hindu population in India experienced decline, while Muslim population witnessed significant growth.

The program hosted by the channel’s Head of news and programs and senior Anchor Ajit Hanumakkanavar, was seen doing a detailed discussion on the EAC-PM report. A pictograph chart displaying data from the report on the percentage share of population Hindu’s and Muslims was aired, in which the Hindu's were depicted using the Indian flag while the Muslims were depicted using a Pakistan flag.

The videos of the viral clipping are supposedly removed from the network’s official social media handles.

The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) recently published a study that analyzed the shifts in religious demographics across various countries from 1950 to 2015. According to the findings, India's Hindu majority population experienced a decline of 7.81 per cent during the 65-year period.In contrast, the Muslim community in India witnessed a significant increase of 43.15 per cent within the same timeframe.

Meanwhile, Independent Think tank, Population Foundation of India (PFI) has expressed deep concerns about media misrepresenting data from the EAC-PM report on religious minorities' share in populations. They highlighted the broader demographic trends, including declining decadal growth rates among Muslims and converging fertility rates between Hindus and Muslims and also called for media houses to present accurate and contextual presentation of data.

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Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).

Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.

The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.

"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.

Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.

The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."

Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.

"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.

Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.

He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.

"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.