Representational image for EVM and VVPAT.
Credit: DH Photo
Bengaluru: The Congress government in Karnataka on Friday recalled the 2024 Lok Sabha election survey report following backlash from its own leaders who questioned the findings and the timing of their release.
The August 2025 report, which was made public a few days ago, disappeared from the website of the Karnataka Monitoring and Evaluation Authority (KMEA).
The KMEA, which comes under the state government’s department of planning, programme monitoring & statistics, had brought out the report.
According to the survey, 84.55% citizens believed that elections in India were free and fair. The survey also found that 83.61% citizens believed EVMs provided "accurate" results.
The survey, which covered 5,100 respondents, was commissioned by Chief Electoral Officer V Anbukumar and carried out by Mysuru-based nonprofit GRAAM (Grassroots Research and Advocacy Movement).
According to sources, the KMEA has decided to subject the report to “further discussion and review”.
While the KMEA removed the report, it was released to the media by Anbukumar's office on Friday afternoon.
Senior Congress leader BK Hariprasad charged that the survey was done “only to sing paeans” about the Election Commission.
“A nonprofit founded by a man working in the Prime Minister’s Office did the survey,” he said.
“The survey is intended to protect the EC's image after the huge support Congress got for its December 14 protest against ‘Vote Chori’,” Hariprasad said.
Rejecting the survey’s findings, Hariprasad said trust in the EC can be restored only if fair elections were held.
“We haven't forgotten how Rs 10,000 was paid to beneficiaries in Bihar (just before elections). Now, the Assam CM has announced that Rs 8,000 will be given to women. They're not able to stop corruption in elections,” he said.
IT/BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank said the survey was commissioned by the EC through the CEO.
“The survey covered only 50 respondents per Assembly. Statistically weak, prone to wide sampling error, selection bias and not suitable for drawing conclusions,” Priyank said. He questioned the BJP’s “silence” on the voter fraud at the Aland constituency in which the saffron party’s former MLA is the prime accused.