He may have buried the hatchet with Sonia Gandhi but P A Sangma says there is no question of either his joining the Congress nor his party NCP merging with it.

The former Lok Sabha Speaker, who met Congress President Gandhi and patched up with her ten years after raking up the issue of her foreign origin, today said that "the question of my joining the Congress does not arise at all".

He was reacting to reports that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had extended an invitation to him to join the party from which he was expelled along with Sharad Pawar and Tariq Anwar.

Sangma said he met the Prime Minister in Parliament and extended the invitation to him for the reception of his son's wedding. The issue of his joining the Congress did not figure in that. "I am fully with Mr Sharad Pawar. He is my leader," he said.

On the merger of NCP with the Congress as demanded by several Congress leaders on the ground that Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin issue was no longer relevant, he said the NCP has gained the status of a national party.

"It has its own identity. Sharad Pawar is a leader in his own right. So, where is the question of NCP merging with Congress," said Sangma.

Sangma said the NCP, with its separate identity, would continue to support the UPA government and cooperate with the Congress.

"We are with the Congress at the Centre, we are with the Congress in Maharashtra as well as in Goa. Though, our attempt to join hands with Congress did not click in Meghalaya, we will continue to cooperate with them," he said.

... contd.