The minister was subsequently felicitated by party MPs and given a hero’s welcome upon returning to his home state of Odisha. Article 81 fixes the composition of the Lok Sabha, while Article 82 mandates the reallocation of seats following each census. The Threshold: Passing a structural amendment requires roughly 360 seats in the Lok Sabha and 164 seats in the Rajya Sabha. Exploiting the Anti-Defection Law: The “Open Market” StrategyTo overcome its legislative defeat in April, the ruling party launched an aggressive push referred to in political circles as “Operation 360”. Current Lok Sabha Seats: 207Projected Lok Sabha Seats: 311Southern Belt (5 States)Current Lok Sabha Seats: 132Projected Lok Sabha Seats: 198Under a population-proportionate delimitation model, the northern Hindi-belt states would see their representation rise from 207 to 311 seats, with Uttar Pradesh and Bihar alone surpassing 200 seats.