December 17, 2025 – India Headlines

Story gist: Delhi government directed all schools to conduct classes up to grades IX and XI in hybrid mode amid air pollution. The directive was issued recently.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like NDTV frame the story around a Delhi minister’s apology for pollution with criticism of AAP government, emphasizing political blame. Center outlets like News On AIR use neutral, factual headlines focusing on the directive itself. Right-leaning outlets are absent, leaving out potential emphasis on government failure or stricter accountability demands.

Story gist: Police identified the Bondi Beach gunman as Sajid Akram, originally from India. His family in India was unaware of his alleged radical mindset, local officials said.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like The Guardian frame the incident as a ‘terror attack,’ emphasizing the gunman’s alleged ‘radical mindset’ and his family’s unawareness. Center outlets like BBC report neutrally, focusing solely on police confirmation of the gunman’s Indian origin. Right-leaning coverage is absent, omitting any conservative framing on immigration, security, or cultural factors.

Story gist: West Bengal published the draft voters list under SIR 2026. About 1.9 crore voters received notices over mapping discrepancies.

Bias summary: Left-leaning Telegraph India emphasizes voter hurdles finding names and missing BLOs, highlighting administrative failures. Center Times of India factually notes draft completion and scale of 1.9 crore discrepancy notices. Right-leaning outlets absent, leaving perspectives on government efficiency or electoral processes unrepresented.

Story gist: The Luthra brothers, accused in a Goa nightclub fire, were deported from Thailand and returned to India. They built a business empire from humble beginnings.

Bias summary: Left-leaning NDTV frames the story around law enforcement success in repatriating the accused from Thailand. Center BBC emphasizes the brothers’ rags-to-riches backstory amid accusations, adding humanizing context. Right-leaning outlets provide no coverage, absenting potential focus on victims, fire tragedy details, or calls for strict punishment.

Story gist: European defense stocks slid after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy abandoned Ukraine’s NATO membership bid. Zelenskyy stated peace proposals to end the Russia-Ukraine war could be presented to Russia within days.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like NYT frame the story with Zelenskyy’s ‘wary optimism’ about a peace plan, emphasizing diplomatic hope. Center outlets like The Hindu report neutrally on imminent peace proposals to Russia. Right-leaning coverage is absent, omitting perspectives that might decry the NATO ditch as capitulation to Russia or weakening Ukraine’s defenses.