In a related development, the Congress Working Commitee tonight asked Sonia to stake claim for forming the next government as and when the President ``invited'' the Congress to do so. A rsolution moved by Arjun Singh also authorised Sonia to talk to leaders of secular parties and arrive at a decision on whether to run a minority government supported from outside or take others along and head a coalition arrangement.

The half-an-hour meeting chaired by Sonia Gandhi , was attended by all Working Committee members except Ahmed Patel and special invitee Sitaram Kesri.

The top leadership in the Congress, the Left, Rashtriya Loktantrik Morcha, AIADMK and others have asserted that these contradictions would rather help in installaing a minority Congress government than aCongress-led coalition.The argument of the Congress is that if the non-BJP parties formed governments at the Centre four times (1979, 1990, 1996 and 1997) in the past with its outside support, it's now their turn to re-pay the debt.

Though the Samajwadi Party is keen to join the government, Mayawati of the Bahujan Samaj Party has conveyed in no uncertain terms to Sonia Gandhi that SP should not be allowed to join the government. There is a similarly opposition to the 18-member strong AIADMK. The Taml Maanila Congress leader P Chidambaram made it clear in the Lok Sabha that his party was supporting the Congress on the belief that the corrupt AIADMK would be kept away from power sharing in Delhi.

If Jayalalitha's party joins the government, the TMC would stay away. The AIADMK leader's antipathy towards Chidamabaram is too well known.

Also, individual MPs and smaller parties like Chandra Shekhar, Janata Dal comprising two former Prime Ministers, Buta Sing, PWP, Muslim League and host of others may supportfrom outside.

An informed source, however, said much would depend on what the Rashtrapati Bhawan would do next after accepting the resignation of the Prime Minister today.

President K R Narayanan can set the ball in motion tomorrow by calling Sonia Gandhi, leader of the second-largest party in Parliament to know if she was in a position to form an alternative government or wait until Monday to initiate any other process which he may deem fit.

Moreover, if the President insists that the new claimant should produce letters of support from those supporting the alternative government, the process may be extended.

Since the Congress has 140 MPs in the Lok Sabha, it will have to obtain letters of support from another 131 MPs to convince the President of its majority and prove the same on the floor of the House at a later date.Now that the roles have been reversed, this time and the Congress is not willing to lend support to the motley crowd of small parties and will have to work hard to obtain the lettersof support from them.

The Congress will take the advantage of contradictions among its allies to keep them at bay. Sonia may induct individuals like Dr Subramanian Swamy (Janata Party), Saifuddin Soz (who split the National Conference this morning) and talented personalities from the outside, into her Cabinet, but would not like to run a 20-party government.

The apex bodies of most of these parties and groups are meeting tonight or tomorrow to take a decision on participation in the next government or lending support from the outside.

Surjeet has already declared today that his party would support the Congress government from outside. CPI leader Indrajit Gupta also indicated that his party may also stay away from the government. The only problem for the Left is to sort out is with the RSP and Forward Bloc who have openly declared their inability to support the Congress either from inside or outside. This means that 7 MPs of the RSP and FB may not give their letters of support.

This problem can betaken care of by depending upon the ability of the Congress leaders to garner support of even those parties and individuals who voted for the BJP today. But Sonia Gandhi would really have to work hard to fill this gap unless a split takes place in the Samata Party, Biju Janata Dal, Lok Shakti, TDP and other BJP allies.

Meanwhile, The RLM is meeting here tonight to discuss the contours of the next government. Its spokesperson Amar Singh told reporters here that the RLM was hopeful that the Congress would establish full coordination among all the ``secular parties'' to form the next government.

Amar Singh asserted that there was no confusion among the ``secular parties''. He described the BSP's stand to vote against the BJP as a ``pleasant beginning'' but expressed doubts about its continuity.

It seems that the Left, the RLM, BSP, AIADMK, TMC and others have indicated to support the Congress from outside, though reluctantly due to political compulsions. And of course, Sonia Gandhi is ready to don themantle.

They did Atal in

The trio of Mayawati, Saifuddin Soz and Giridhar Gomang virtually sealed the fate of the 13-month-old Vajpayee Government.

While Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati kept her cards close to her chest in a modern `revenge' drama, National Conference's Soz proved to be the proverbial back-stabber by doing a Brutus on Vajpayee.

However, Orissa Chief Minister Giridhar Gamang's (Congress) conscience must still be resting easy on that all-important conscientious vote that he cast, which scripted the climax, or rather an anti-climax for BJP and its allies.