A group of rebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar has approached Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, seeking separate seating arrangements in the House, and announces plans to merge with the Nationalist Citizen Party. Multiple outlets report that the MPs also say they intend to support the NDA. The move is presented as formal and coordinated, with Dastidar stating they will work with the NDA for the country’s interests. One report notes the development follows remarks by TMC general secretary Abhishek Banerjee to the Lok Sabha speaker, asking him not to recognize the rebel faction as a separate bloc. The reports therefore frame the announcement as occurring amid a dispute over parliamentary recognition and seating, alongside efforts by the rebel group to realign politically through a merger. No details in the provided accounts specify the timing or the procedural steps beyond the MPs’ approach to the Speaker and their stated plan to merge and back the NDA.