New Delhi: Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) tonight (Jan 19, 2004) inched towards a split with Northeast People's Forum (NPF), of which senior party leader P A Sangma is the convener, deciding to offer "full support" to National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the national level.

Nagaland Chief Minister N Rio told reporters after an hour-long meeting of the Executive Committee of the Forum that he had been authorised to take up the matter of joining the NDA.

Sangma said he had a talk this morning with NCP president Sharad Pawar, who told him that a meeting involving him, Pawar and Chattisgarh NCP leader V C Shukla would be held in New Delhi on January 24 for "last consultations."

To a question as to what he meant by "last consultations", Sangma said, "We have to decide this way or that way."

Asked whether he was in the NCP, Sangma said, "You will know in a couple of days."