People of UP rejected politics of caste & religion: Rahul

However, he parried questions on his joining the Cabinet which the Prime Minister had earlier in the day said he would like.

At an impromtu interaction with the media here, Rahul complimented BJP leader L K Advani on giving a "strong fight" in the Lok Sabha polls but said he differed fundamentally with his politics of "changing the secular traditions".

"This election is a testament of the fact that the youth of the country wants unification and believes in clean and honest politics that is what Manmohan Singh embodies," Rahul said.

He said he was happy that the "young and poor people" of the country have given the mandate.

Asked whether he would join the Cabinet, Rahul said: he has a job to help the youth of the country.

"I want to say that youth should come to politics and should change the way the present politics functions. I have got a job to do to help youth of this country," he said.

To a question whether his party got more seats because of his efforts, Rahul said: "People of Uttar Pradesh have rejected the politics of caste and religion and voted for development."

Asked whether the credit for party's victory should go to him, he pointed to his sister Priyanka standing by his side who said the full credit should go to Rahul.

However, he added that "One cannot do it on his own. If one has to achieve anything in life it has to be a team effort. Team work is important. The 100 per cent goes to our team."

Gandhi attributed his win to the people of Uttar Pradesh and teamwork.

"The credit for my win goes not only to one person but to the people of this state and the party's teamwork. In fact the people of this state had felt that they had been cheated by other parties," he said.

He said the challenge was the development of Uttar Pradesh and "this is only a small start".

"Our job does not end here, in fact it begins from here and the main challenge is to bring Uttar Pradesh back on the track of development. UP has been lagging behind on the path of development for years and can easily claim the top honours. This is only a small start," he said.

The Congress general secretary said he wanted to work for the people of the state and "Rahul Gandhi and the youth of UP will work together. The people of this state want development and in the next three years, we will change the face of UP."

Gandhi said the Congress was looking for talented people to join the party.

"We are searching for talented and dedicated youths and if they are listening, they are most welcome to join our organisation," he said.

When asked whether there is any possibility of an alliance with Samajwadi Party, Rahul said "It is for Manmohan Singhji and the Central leadership to decide on this issue."

He praised BJP's prime ministerial candidate Advani and said, "I have great respect for him, but I have nothing to do with the kind of politics he practises."

Congress star campaigner Priyanka, who was also present, said, "I will continue to work for the party."