'Shortcut politics not going to work anymore,' says PM Modi in Maharashtra

'There are self-centered politicians and political parties…expose them,' Modi said

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the country needed sustainable development, not "shortcut politics". He cautioned people to expose politicians and parties that indulged in "shortcut politics", looting taxpayers' money and capturing power through false promises, which will destroy the country's economy.

The PM didn't name these politicians and parties. But the PM's comments come in the wake of the recently concluded polls. The BJP lost the Himachal Pradesh elections and Delhi's civic polls last week, with its Gujarat win saving it blushes. In Himachal, the Congress trumped the BJP. Among other promies, the Congress committed to the electorate a return to the old pension scheme in the state. The BJP lost the Delhi civic polls to the Aam Aadmi Party, whose sundry welfare schemes the PM has, since July, taken to denounce as "revdi" or freebies.

The PM's attack on "shortcut" politics indicated that it could become the focus of the BJP's campaign pitch for the forthcoming assembly polls and the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. Modi had expressed a similar sentiment in his speech at the BJP national headquarters in New Delhi after the party's Gujarat win.

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After inaugurating projects worth Rs 75,000 crore in Nagpur on Sunday, the PM said, "The election results in Gujarat are the result of the economic policy of permanent development and permanent solution."

"A developed India can become a reality through united strength, progress and development of all states. When we have a narrow approach towards development, opportunities are also limited," he said.

"…some political parties are looting the hard-earned taxpayers' money for political interests and adopting shortcuts with the aim of forming the government by making false promises….people should expose such leaders and political parties," Modi said.

The BJP faces tough few elections in the run-up to the Lok Sabha polls, including in states it rules, such as Tripura, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh, along with Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and three of the northeastern states. It will also face challenging local bodies polls in Maharashtra, including in Mumbai.

The PM said when the country is working towards becoming a developed nation in the next 25 years, some political parties want to destroy the economy of India for self-interest. "It is time for the fourth industrial revolution, India cannot miss it," he said.

The PM pointed to South Korea, the Gulf countries and Singapore as examples of economic transformation. "Youngsters and taxpayers of the country should expose selfish political parties that go by the policy of 'aamdani atthanni, kharcha rupaiya' (earning less, spending more)," he said, adding that there are many countries of the world where entire economies collapsed due to such bad policymaking.