It’s a great start to 2017: Modi on Maharashtra win

With the BJP making massive gains in the Maharashtra local body polls, including the Brihanmumbai Muncipal Corporation (BMC), Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday thanked the people of the state for “their faith” in his party and in “politics of development and good governance”.

The Bharatiya Janata Party decided to celebrate its impressive show in the Odisha and Maharashtra civic polls with a “vijay utsav” on February 25 across all its district offices in the country.

BJP president Amit Shah congratulated the party’s Maharashtra unit for the “unprecedented success”. Union finance minister Arun Jaitley said that parties which adopt dynastic succession as an alternative to merit-based leadership, suffer from a natural political disadvantage.

Mr Jaitley said that while in Odisha, the Congress got “squeezed out of the contest”, in Maharashtra it “got pushed to third or fourth place in most cities”. Mr Modi said the “overwhelming blessings” in Maharashtra came after Odisha. He thanked “each and every Indian for continuously placing their faith in BJP”. “We are working to create a strong and inclusive India,” he added.

“It has been a great start to 2017! First the unprecedented support in Odisha and now the overwhelming blessings from people of Maharashtra. Extremely thankful to the sisters and brothers of Maharashtra for their faith in BJP and in politics of development and good governance,” Mr Modi tweeted.

Union minister Prakash Javadekar said BJP’s performance in Maharashtra and Odisha local polls and the losses of the Congress showed that the poor has deserted its rival and is supporting Mr Modi’s policies.

First unprecedented support in Odisha and now the overwhelming blessings from people of Maharashtra, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted