‘BJP has been blessed, now it’s time to work’: PM Modi tells Odisha MPs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met BJP MPs in Odisha and said the people of the state have given immense power to the party and it is time for the elected members to work for them.

“The BJP has been accepted by the people of Odisha and that is why we have got this mandate. But now we have to win their trust by working for the cause of the people,” PM Modi said during a 45-minute meeting with BJP MPs on Monday.

This was the introduction of various MLAs from the saffron party, many of whom were first-time MPs in Parliament.

“It is OK that we can win elections in this way, but it is not enough to win elections, we need to meet the needs of the people and serve the people. This is the real challenge,” PM Modi told party MPs.

The message from Prime Minister Narendra Modi was clear and direct. Although the party has achieved some success in the eastern state – both in the Lok Sabha and the assembly elections – there is still a lot of room for the party to further expand its influence.

The Prime Minister not only asked his party workers to go deep into the grassroots and take the central government’s schemes to the masses, but also told them to go the last mile. The Prime Minister also cited the example of the Gujarat model that everyone is talking about. In fact, he also shared some interesting anecdotes from his time as the Chief Minister of Gujarat.

One of the major initiatives the party needs to take is to reach out to the youth. “PM Modi said all the youth really need to do is stay clean. So it is very important to make the youth aware of the benefits of schemes like Swachh Bharat Abhiyan,” a source said, adding that they have been given a task to enrol around 1.5 lakh youths under the scheme by the end of 2024.

PM Modi said that the emphasis should be on humility and not the arrogance of power. In fact, he asked them to hold small lunch meetings with grassroots party workers.

In a lighthearted atmosphere, the Prime Minister also joked with senior party MP Sangita Singh Deo, who won in Bolangir. Sangita’s husband Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo is the deputy chief minister in the Odisha government.

Talking about another MP, Pradeep Kumar Panigrahhy from Bellampur, PM Modi said he was known for his loud and aggressive voice, which was also confirmed in the Rajya Sabha earlier. The PM smiled and said his voice was so loud that it could be heard even from Parliament to Gujarat.

The BJP came to power in Odisha and won a majority in the state, surpassing the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government, creating history in the state. The state has three cabinet ministers – Ashwani Vaishnav Dharmendra Pradhan and Juar Oram from the central government. The party won 20 of the 21 Lok Sabha seats, a significant increase in its presence after getting 12 MPs in 2019. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav is currently the party’s only Rajya Sabha MP in Odisha.

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