Refrain from transferring officials: PM Modi cautions UP BJP MPs

Remarks came during meeting with parliamentarians from UP over breakfast at his official residence

Days after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) installed its government under Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday cautioned party MPs from the state to refrain from pressurising state officials and asked them to focus on the development of their region, sources said.

Modi's remarks came during his meeting with parliamentarians from the state over breakfast at his official residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg in New Delhi.

BJP President Amit Shah, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and party veteran Murali Manohar Joshi also attended the meeting.

Union Parliamentary Affairs Ministers Ananth Kumar refused to divulge details of the meeting but said the Prime Minister meets with MPs from different states during the Parliament session.

"Prime Minister asked us to refrain from transferring and posting of officials. This causes unnecessary pressure on the state government," a BJP parliamentarian who was present at the meeting quoted Modi as saying. The MP spoke to IANS on condition of anonymity.

The BJP leader said the Prime Minister also asked the MPs to focus on the development of their region.

"The mandate is for development. We have to focus on development only. Good governance is the mantra of development," the BJP leader quoted Modi as saying.

Sources said the Prime Minister said that the MPs have a good opportunity to develop their region as there is a BJP government in the state as well as at the Centre.

He also asked party MPs to work in coordination with the state government.

This was the first such meeting after BJP leader Yogi Adityanath took over as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh on Sunday.

The Prime Minister hailed the MPs for their hard work during the assembly elections and urged them to continue their work.

Sultanpur MP Varun Gandhi and Mathura MP Hema Malini attended the meeting, among others.

The BJP won 312 seats in the just-concluded elections to the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly. The party has promised all-round development in the state.

Uttar Pradesh, which sends 80 members to the Lok Sabha, is crucial for Modi in view of the 2019 general elections.

The BJP has 71 MPs from Uttar Pradesh, including Modi.