India, June 14 -- Twenty bebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs are set to join the Tripura-based Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) and extend support to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), TMC leader Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar said on Sunday, marking a significant escalation in the internal turmoil within the party.

Announcing the move, Dastidar-once considered a close confidante of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-told reporters, "We are going to merge with the Nationalist Citizens Party and support the NDA."

She further stated that two-thirds of TMC MPs have submitted a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker seeking a separate seating arrangement in Parliament, indicating a formal split within the parliamentary party.

The dev...