New Delhi, Oct. 6 -- Hitting back at the opposition's nationwide agitations and demands following the SIR row, Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday accused the opposition of dragging the country backwards.

Weighing in on the opposition's three-kilometre protest march and their core demands, including the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, the scrapping of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), and a return to ballot papers, Chouhan argued that the agitation reflects a fundamental disrespect for the people's mandate.

"They are not concerned about democracy; they are bitter about defeat and insulting the mandate. Imagine 19 parties, a 3-kilometre march, and what's the demand? To take the country back to th...