Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday exhorted the ruling BJP-led MahaYuti to emulate the example of Gujarat where the BJP controls the state from Gram Panchayat level  to the State Assembly and Lok Sabha single-handedly, and gain full control of Maharashtra.

Addressing the newly elected MLAs of the ruling MahaYuti – comprising BJP, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) and NCP (Ajit Pawar) at a luncheon meeting organised at the INS Angre Auditorium here, Modi said: “In Gujarat, we the BJP have control from the local bodies to the State Assembly and Lok Sabha. You should take a cue from the Gujarat pattern and gain full control over Maharashtra”.

Alluding to the manner which the Congress held onto power for years on end, Modi took a dig at the grand-old party by saying: “In the first five year, the Congress would announce that it would build roads. In the second five year plan, the Congress would show maps of the roads it was building. And in the third five year plan, it would announce that work on road building has started. That’s how the Congress managed to hold onto power in the country and states for years”.

Modi asked the newly elected MahaYuti MLAs to take active part in building the party organisation at the grass-root level. “Take time out to visit the party offices and meet the party office bearers at their constituency level,” he told the legislators.   

Modi also advised the MLAs to also take care of their health while taking care of their constituencies. “I also advise you that while speaking to the media, be careful that you will land in controversies,” he told the MLAs present at the joint three-party luncheon meeting.

The Prime Minister also asked the MLAs of BJP, Shiv Sena (Shinde) and NCP (Ajit Pawar) to ensure that the schemes of the Centre and State government reached the people.

Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP, deputy chief ministers Eknath Shinde of the Shiv Sena (Shinde), Ajit Pawar of the NCP (AP) and state BJP office bearers were among those present at the joint luncheon meeting.

Wednesday’s joint address by the Prime Minister came six weeks after the BJP-led MahaYuti returned to power in Maharashtra through a spectacular victory in the State Assembly polls -- in which the ruling front won 230 seats out of the total 288 seats, as against 46 seats secured by the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).

It may be recalled that in the Assembly polls, the BJP walked away with 132 seats out of the total 288 seats, followed by its allies Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena with 57 seats and Ajit Pawar-led NCP with 41 seats. On the other hand, the MVA constituents --Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP -- secured 20, 16, and 10 seats, respectively

The joint meeting comes days after BJP's state-level grand convention in Shirdi, which was addressed by Union Home Minister and BJP’s chief strategist

Amit Shah.