Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, who met Sonia Gandhi on Friday morning, said all prospective partners would discuss in a day or two the issue of whether the Congress president could head the new government.

"The issue [of Gandhi becoming prime minister] did not come up during my meeting with her and no decision has been taken,"

Pawar, who had kept aside his party's opposition to a person of foreign origin occupying the top post before entering into an alliance with Congress, said in New Delhi.

He also said his party's working committee would decide whether to join the government, but made it clear that the NCP would help and support the Congress in providing a stable coalition.

A committee to draft a common minimum programme of the new coalition would be headed by Congress leader Dr Manmohan Singh and "all those who fought together and those who want to join the new coalition will sit together and discuss the issue and take a decision", he said.