Democratic Party of Japan Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa met late last month with a former leader of Soka Gakkai, the nation's largest lay Buddhist organization, which backs the opposition New Komeito, sources said Tuesday.

The meeting between the ruling party's No. 2 and former Soka Gakkai President Einosuke Akiya, who is now serving as chairman of the group's supreme leaders council, has set off speculation in political circles that they may have been exploring a DPJ-New Komeito partnership.

The two met at a Tokyo hotel on the night of Feb. 26, the sources said, adding that DPJ acting Secretary General Azuma Koshiishi and Yuichi Ichikawa, a former secretary general of New Komeito's predecessor, who now serves as the party's standing adviser, also attended the meeting.

Participants discussed the prospects for the Upper House election this summer, including Soka Gakkai's plans for the contest, the sources said. The election is expected to take place this summer.

Backed by followers of Soka Gakkai, New Komeito provided crucial electoral support for the Liberal Democratic Party when they formed the ruling coalition until its defeat in last year's general election.

Ozawa apparently hopes New Komeito will stop supporting the LDP in elections, the sources said.

On the possibility of an alliance between the DPJ and New Komeito, a senior DPJ lawmaker said, "We cannot accept (New Komeito) shaking hands with us, while holding hands with the LDP."