November 20, 2025 – India Headlines

Story gist: Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Sachin Tendulkar attended the centenary celebrations of Sri Sathya Sai Baba in Puttaparthi, India. Aishwarya Rai stated there is only one caste, one religion, and one language, and touched Modi’s feet.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like The Indian Express emphasize Aishwarya Rai’s unifying statement on caste, religion, and language, along with her gesture of touching Modi’s feet, highlighting interfaith harmony and respect for leadership. Center outlets like The Times of India offer neutral reporting focused on attendance at the event without additional details. Right-leaning outlets provide no coverage, omitting the story and potentially avoiding positive framing of Modi’s involvement in spiritual celebrations.

Story gist: Nitish Kumar is scheduled to take oath as Chief Minister of Bihar today in Patna. NDA leaders, including Amit Shah, have arrived in Patna for the government formation event.

Bias summary: Left-leaning NDTV frames the story analytically, emphasizing five key factors shaping Nitish Kumar’s cabinet to highlight political influences and potential shifts. Center outlet Hindustan Times provides neutral, factual coverage mirroring the event’s timeline and arrivals without added context. Right-leaning India TV presents it via a talk show episode, likely infusing opinionated NDA-supportive commentary; no straight news angle from the right is evident, omitting neutral reporting in favor of discussion.

Story gist: Bangladesh sentenced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death. Days later, Bangladesh invited India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to visit Dhaka.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like The Hindu frame the story by emphasizing the timing of the invitation immediately after Hasina’s death sentence, highlighting potential diplomatic tensions between India and Bangladesh. Center-leaning sources such as The New Indian Express shift focus to a broader regional security meeting in Delhi involving NSAs from the Colombo Security Conclave. Right-leaning coverage is absent, omitting perspectives that might stress India’s strategic interests or critique the post-sentence outreach.

Story gist: U.S. President Donald Trump designated Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh as a major non-NATO ally. Trump praised Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a speech at the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum in Riyadh.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like The Guardian frame the story with a critical tone, emphasizing Trump’s excessive praise for Prince Mohammed and implying ulterior motives in the U.S.-Saudi alliance. Center outlets such as CNBC adopt a neutral approach, focusing solely on Trump’s speech at the investment forum without added context. Right-leaning perspectives are absent, leaving out potentially supportive views on strengthening U.S.-Saudi ties for security and economic benefits.

Story gist: India’s Supreme Court struck down provisions of the Tribunals Reforms Act for violating judicial independence. The government then re-enacted similar provisions, highlighting inconsistency with the court’s decision.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like TheWire.in frame the story by emphasizing the Supreme Court’s ruling against government overreach on judicial independence, using critical tone to highlight executive encroachment. Center outlets like Live Law focus neutrally on the legal inconsistency in re-enacting struck-down provisions, stressing procedural spirit without blame. Right-leaning perspectives are absent, omitting potential defenses of administrative efficiency or government intent.