NCP ready to join government

After a lot of deliberation, the Nationalist Congress Party of Friday evening said it was ready to join the Congress-led government at the Centre.

It is up to the prime minister-designate, Dr Manmohan Singh [ Images ], to decide what portfolios to allocate to the NCP members, party leader Praful Patel [ Images ] said in New Delhi [ Images ].

The announcement followed parleys between NCP chief Sharad Pawar [ Images ] and Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Laloo Prasad Yadav [ Images ], who denied he was hankering for a key portfolio.

The two had announced that they would jointly decide whether to join the government.