Duty of Opposition to oppose govt and seek regime change through polls: Congress

New Delhi: Congress rejected the government's charge that Opposition protests were part of a plot to create "Bangladesh-like anarchy" and force regime change to destabilise the nation. The party said it indeed wants to oppose the government policies and bring about regime change but only through elections.

Opposing the government of the day and protesting against its policies have always been the opposition's responsibility, Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said.

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"Rajnath Singh should tell us when such a movement ever happened, where the opposition demanded that the government be given not five but 10 years," Khera said.

"Whether we were in the Opposition or they were in the Opposition, it never happened so. Whenever the Opposition takes to the streets, it comes to oppose you, it comes to defeat you in elections. This is also our democratic responsibility. If you object to these things, then go ahead and change the Constitution."

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Congress also cited former president Pranab Mukherjee's views on the role of the Opposition. "The defence minister needs to be reminded of what the former president Pranab Mukherjee, who was awarded the Bharat Ratna in 2019, would often say: 'the job of the opposition in a democracy is to oppose, expose and depose'," said another spokesperson Jairam Ramesh.