NEW DELHI — The ruling coalition announced Tuesday that it is extremely close to achieving a broad, bipartisan consensus on the 131st Constitutional Amendment Bill, noting it only needs to acquire 33 more opposition MPs to reach the necessary two-thirds majority of 362 in the Lok Sabha.

Having already secured constructive dialogue with 20 TMC and 6 Shiv Sena (UBT) members who recently switched sides following the bill's initial legislative failure in April 2026, officials confirmed the government's democratic outreach program is proceeding exactly to schedule. The ruling bloc's strength now sits at 329, just 33 defections shy of a mandate to fundamentally alter India's electoral landscape ahead of the 2029 elections.

"We strongly believe that a bill expanding the Lok Sabha to 850 seats requires the input of the opposition," said a ministry spokesperson. "And we have found that the most efficient way to get the opposition's input is to legally absorb them into the ruling party just before the vote."

The spokesperson also addressed concerns from Southern states, who fear the delimitation process will permanently dilute their political representation as a penalty for successful population control. "We have assured them a uniform fifty percent increase across the board," the official added, before returning his attention to a spreadsheet tracking the fluctuating market value of the remaining 33 unacquired parliamentarians.