Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asked the BJP leaders to keep national interest above the party.

Addressing the BJP Parliamentary Party meeting at the Parliament Library Building, PM Modi told the leaders to keep in mind that the nation is supreme and development is the party’s mantra. He added that peace, unity and harmony are prerequisites for development.

Targetting the Opposition, the Prime Minister further said that there are some parties that keep their interests above national interest.

“Development of the nation is important, and peace, harmony and unity are necessary for that development. Some people are living for their parties, but we live for the country,” the Prime Minister said.

PM Modi also took a swipe at former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh saying the senior Congress leader was reluctant to chant slogans like “Bharat Mata Ki Jai”.

Manmohan Singh during a book release function in the national capital had hailed the role of first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in shaping India as a modern nation-state and said that “nationalism” and the slogan of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ are being misused to construct a militant and purely emotional idea of India.

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said, “A meeting was held under the leadership of Modiji. The Prime Minister said that we are here for the benefit of the country. Modiji said that country’s interest is supreme and development is our mantra,” adding that for development there should be “peace, unity and goodwill”.

“The Prime Minister also said that the matter of country’s interest and party’s interest also came in during freedom struggle but country’s interest was on priority at that time. But some parties are now putting party’s interest above country’s interest,” Joshi said.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President JP Nadda, MoS PMO Jitendra Singh and Union Minister Smriti Irani were also in attendance at the meeting.

PM Modi’s speech comes in the backdrop of the unprecedented violence that rock the northeast part of Delhi last week, claiming over 45 lives.

The Opposition has targeted the Centre over the riots and demanded the resignation of the Prime Minister and Home Minister Amit Shah.