New Delhi, June 11 -- Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress (TMC) is facing one of its gravest internal crises, with widening factional rifts, high-profile resignations and increasingly assertive rebels fueling speculation of a split.

Senior party leader and Lok Sabha MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar confirmed that a group of 20 parliamentarians has formally sought separate seating arrangements in the Lok Sabha, a move widely seen as a clear indication of an organisational split within the party's ranks.

Earlier, there were reports that the rebel TMC MPs met Union Minister Bhupender Yadav. Also, BJP leaders in West Bengal have triggered speculation of a possible alignment with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). However, no official merger h...