The party drive in U.P. and Punjab has been on for a while as part of a countrywide effort

Over the next few weeks, the Congress’s game plan to secure Dalit support in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh will unfold, ahead of next year’s Assembly elections in these States. However, as K. Raju, who heads the party’s Scheduled Caste Cell, told The Hindu, the strategies will differ for each, keeping in mind the ground situation.

In Punjab, where Dalits account for 31.94 per cent of the population, the party is working to attract all Dalit communities, whether Ravidassias, Balmikis or Mazhabi Sikhs.

In Uttar Pradesh, where the Dalit population is 20.5 per cent, it will focus on the non-Jatav Dalits. “As far as the Dalit vote is concerned, the challenge in U.P. is far more formidable as [Bahujan Samaj Party leader] Mayawati appears to have consolidated her Jatav vote. We have gained the confidence of a few Jatav leaders, but we will focus on Valmikis and Pasis,” Mr. Raju said.

But Valmikis and Pasis tend to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party? “No, this time, all Dalits, thanks to the Una incident in Gujarat, have turned away from the party,” he said.

What becomes clear through the conversation with Mr. Raju is that the Congress’s campaign to draw in Dalits in the two States has been in the works for a while as part of a countrywide effort.

The Dalit uprising in Una has given a fillip to this campaign, though the party has chosen not to publicise the work it is doing in Gujarat among community members, which it hopes will help it in Uttar Pradesh.

Mr. Raju said the movement, led by lawyer Jignesh Mevani, in the aftermath of Una was dominated by Congress workers, led by party national secretary Deepak Babariya, who is from the State and has a NGO background.

The Congress did not seek publicity, Mr. Raju continued, as party vice-president Rahul Gandhi did not want to politicise the issue. Now, in the next one month, “under the broader umbrella of the Congress”, an independent non-political initiative called the Dalit Swabhiman Abhiyan, which will include NGOs and employees’ organisations, will be announced.