Diggy says caste equations will not be a factor in UP elections.

AFTER winning the Firozabad Lok Sabha by- election, an upbeat Congress has begun strategy sessions on how to win the 2012 assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh.

AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi and Digvijay Singh, who is the party incharge in UP, are crafting the winning formula in consultations with other senior leaders.

Singh on Monday had talks with UPCC president Rita Bahuguna Joshi and Congress legislature party leader Pramod Tewari.

Exuding confidence abouta Congress victory, Singh said a churning is talking place in the state.

People are fed up with ' Mandal' and ' kamandal' politics, he said, and " the politics of caste is over". Voters are looking at the programmes and policies of the parties and their candidates.

Singh said the Dalits, especially non- Chamars, are slowly returning to the Congress fold. " Even the Jatavs and Chamars ( considered BSP vote base) are disillusioned." Asked how, then, did the BSP win 9 of the 11 seats in the bypolls, Singh said the entire state administration was fighting the polls.

Besides, " bypolls do not show a trend", he said.

" I am not saying it has endedC* but the politics of caste, not only in UP but all over the country, is changing," he said.

Singh said the Congress was not perturbed over the reported move of former BJP leaders Kalyan Singh and Uma Bharti to return to the saffron fold. " We are happy that Kalyan and Uma want to go back ( to the BJP). They are party breakers.

The party ( BJP) is already grappling with a leadership crisis. I am sure they would facilitate more confusion and crisis in the BJP," he said.

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