New Delhi: With numbers in his favour, NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) chief Sharad Pawar today (Oct 17, 2004) met Congress president Sonia Gandhi and staked claim for Maharashtra Chief Ministership for his party, which has emerged as the single largest party in the Assembly polls.

"We are ready to show our figure. Our position is good," Pawar told reporters in New Delhi soon after the meeting, the first between the two leaders after the polls.

Final party position for Maharashtra Assembly

Pawar, who had late in the evening yesterday asserted his party was entitled to have the Chief Ministership, said the 1999 formula was discussed in the meeting with Gandhi. Under the formula NCP had conceded Chief Minister's post to the national party which had more number of MLAs.

In the just concluded polls, NCP has won 71 seats and the Congress 69.

To a question about Congress claiming that the three seats won by the CPM (Communist Party of India-Marxist), to which it had allotted five, should be added to its kitty, Pawar said, "We are prepared to discuss any methodology" and make a list of MLAs supporting each of the alliance partners.