The Edit Page: Bihar shows old Opposition to BJP getting eased out, new Opposition not in sight 10 FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2025 JOURNALISM of COURAGE NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 22 PAGES ₹7.00 (₹8 RAIPUR, ₹15 SRINAGAR) l www.indianexpress.com DA I LY F R O M : A H M E DA B A D , C H A N D I GA R H , D E L H I , J A I P U R , KO L K ATA , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N AG P U R , PAT N A , P U N E , VA D O DA R A Happening today lPRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI leaves for Johannesburg to attend the G20 summit. Other world leaders are also expected to arrive in South Africa for the two-day meet. lTHE ASHES BEGINS in Perth at 7.50 am IST. An ageing, understrength Australia will defend their home record as an optimistic England look to claim the biggest prize on Australian soil. lFINANCE MINISTER Nirmala Sitharaman to hold pre-Budget consultations on energy, infrastructure and urbanisation. lFINANCIAL SERVICES SECRETARY M Nagaraju and Sebi Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey to speak at the National Conclave on REITs and InvITs. TRACK THESE AND MORE ON WWW.INDIANExPRESS.COM ANSWERING PRESIDENTIAL REFERENCE, CONSTITUTION BENCH DISAGREES WITH EARLIER VERDICT No timelines for President and Governors on Bill: Supreme Court Long inaction by Governor on Bill can invite limited judicial scrutiny: Bench Ananthakrishnan G New Delhi, November 20 UNDERLINING THAT “the role of the President in protecting and defending the Constitution–inbindingtheUnionas a cohesive unit – is crucial,” a five-judge Constitution Bench Thursday said that no timeline can be fixed for the President and Governors to act on Bills passed by state legislatures although “inaction that is prolonged, unexplained and indefinite” by the Governor “will certainly invite limited judicial scrutiny”. The Bench, comprising ChiefJusticeofIndiaBRGavai, Justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, P S Narasimha and A S Chandurkar, redefining the Governor’spowerunderArticle 200 to deal with state Bills, also said that the Governor is not bound to give assent to a Bill even when it is presented to him by the legislature for a second time with or without any »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 FLAGS SEPARATION OF POWERS Apex court draws red line for itself, but keeps option to push it Apurva Vishwanath New Delhi, November 20 THE SUPREME Court rolled back the timelines and directives for the Governor and President but by holding the door open for states to move the court against a Governor delaying the legislative process, the apex court seeks to strike a balance in the separ- ation of powers. Its opinion, in its advisory jurisdiction, flags that its role is limited to “glaring circumstances”. “The discharge of the Governor’s function under Article 200, is not justiciable. The Court cannot enter into a meritsreviewofthedecision so taken. However, in glaring circumstances of inaction that is prolonged, un- E. RED FORT BLAST-LINKED TERROR MODULE Nitish back as CM, his Cabinet blends Foreign handler ‘shared 42 old and new, seeks bomb-making videos with to balance caste doctor on encrypted apps’ 26 ministers also take oath; BJP’s Samrat and Sinha remain Dy CMs EXPRESS exclusive Johnson TA Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and PM Narendra Modi during the oath-taking ceremony at Gandhi Maidan in Patna on Thursday. PTI Santosh Singh Business as Usual Patna, November 20 JD(U)CHIEFNitishKumarwas sworn in as Bihar Chief Minister for a record 10th time along with 26 ministers at the historic Gandhi Maidan in Patna on Thursday, days after the NDA stormed back to power in the state. Theceremonywasattended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national presidentJPNaddaandtheCMsof11 NDA-ruled states, including Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi AdityanathandAndhraPradeshCMN Chandrababu Naidu. During the event, the PM bowed to the audience thrice and waved his gamchha (towel). In a post on X, he said: “Congratulations to Shri Nitish Kumar Ji on taking oath as Bihar’s Chief Minister. He is an By EP UNNY »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RELATED REPORTS, P 8 ExPLAINED, P 16 THE EDIT PAGE, P 10 NATION pAGE 8 dAy BEforE fESt, frESh tENSIoNS IN mANIpUr Upasika Singhal & Alok Singh New Delhi, November 20 TWO DAYS after a Class 10 student from Delhi's St Columba’s School jumped to his death at the Rajendra Place metro station, with his family alleging later that he faced harassment from teachers, the institution placed four members of its teaching staff under suspension. The Delhi government also set up a “high-level” committee to probe the incident. An official order, issued by the school’s principal Robert Fernandes, stated that the action against three teachers and a headmistress followed the registration of an FIR in the casewhiletakingintoconsideration the “seriousness of the allegations” against them. Theorderstatedthatthesuspended staff must “not visit the schoolpremisesorinteractwith students, staff, or parents without prior written permission from the administration”. PrincipalFernandesdidnotrespond torequestsfromTheIndianEx- Amrita Nayak Dutta New Delhi, November 20 Terror module accused, produced at Delhi’s Patiala House Courts Thursday, were sent to NIA custody for 10 days. TASHI TOBGYAL P 5 Kashmir Times raided, police say gun, bullets found; owners allege ‘bid to silence’ press Arun Sharma Jammu, November 20 THE STATE Investigation Agency (SIA) of J&K on Thursday said it had raided the office in Jammu of Kashmir Times — one of the oldest English news- EcONOmY THE US has approved the sale of Excalibur guided artillery projectiles and the anti-tank Javelin missile system and related equipment worth over $90 million to India, marking a significant step forward for Delhi’s big-ticket military procurements from Washington. U.S. SANctIoNS Loom, rUSSIAN oIL LoAdING for INdIA hALvES »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RELATED REPORTS, P 6 New Delhi, November 20 THE ENFORCEMENT Directorate has filed a supplementary prosecution complaint namingRobertVadra,husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and son-in-law of Sonia Gandhi, as an accused in an alleged black money case linked to UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari. Theprosecutioncomplaint, which is akin to a chargesheet, paperhousesintheregion—as partofitsprobeinacaseagainst the organisation for its alleged “involvement in criminal conspiracy with secessionist and other anti-national entities”. Following the searches, »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 was filed before a special court in the Rouse Avenue court complex on November 15 and will be heard on December 6. Bhandari fled to London after a search by the Income Tax department in 2016. A year »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 l NEGLECT BLIGHTS BANKIM CHANDRA CHATTOPADHYAY’S ‘BAITHAKKHANA’ WHERE HE WROTE NATIONAL SONG Vande Mataram birthplace fights for survival: Damp walls, crammed rooms & fund crunch Ravik Bhattacharya Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay’s ‘Baithakkhana’ — the three-room parlour where the IN ONE corner of the Bankim 19th-century novelist, poet, esBhavanGaveshanaKendraMu- sayist and journalist wrote seum — some 45 km from Kol- Vande Mataram, which marks kata — a bronze bust, a hand- its 150th anniversary this year. written music book, But as political PAGE 1 a shawl and a turban parties wage a credit compete for space in war, pitting the poet a pastel-blue room against Rabindralined with family photographs. nath Tagore, the Baithakkhana This red-and-beige, single- fights another battle — that storeyed building with shi- against government neglect khara domes and arched door- and public apathy. Signs of this ways in Kantalpara, Naihati, is appear everywhere: the walls Naihati, Kolkata, Nov 20 anchor PARTHA PAUL Bankim Bhavan Gaveshana Kendra Museum in North 24 Parganas pAGE 15 TheDefenceSecurityCooperationAgency,intwoseparate ED names Vadra as accused in case against UK-based arms consultant Nirbhay Thakur & Mahender Singh Manral press for comment. OnThursdayafternoon,the boy's family conducted his last rites on Thursday afternoon at their hometown in Maharashtra’s Sangli after receiving the body from Delhi. Speaking to The Indian Express later, the boy’s father said his son had complainedabout the teachers soon after he began Class 10 — and that he had promised to admit him to a different school just a day before his death. “He would tell me to get his schoolchanged.Itoldhimthere wereonlytendaysofschoolleft and, after that, he had to go »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 US clears sale of Excalibur shells, Javelin missile systems to India FULL REPORT On WWW.InDIAnEXPRESS.COM experienced administrator with a proven track record of good governance for many years.Mybestwishestohimfor his tenure ahead.” Parents protest at St Columba’s School over the student’s death. ANI FULL COVERAGE, P4 Officials probe if handlers had role in OVER $90-MILLION DEAL similar DIY bombings in recent times Bengaluru, November 20 ONE OF three alleged foreign handlers linked to the doctors from Faridabad’s Al Falah Medical College, who are accused in the Red Fort blastlinked terror module, sent 42 videos on making bombs via encrypted apps to Muzammil Ahmad Ganai, one of the arrested doctors, investigators have told The Indian Express. Ganai was a colleague and associate of Umar Nabi, 36, who carried out a blast. The roles and identities of thehandlers,whoinvestigators believe helped the module buildabombandnudgedthem on the path of a suicide attack, are now being scrutinised by security agencies for overlaps withincidentsinvolvingasimilar modus operandi of do-ityourself (DIY) bombings in India in recent times, said sources in Karnataka familiar with the Delhi probe. The three handlers in the Delhi casehave beenidentified explained,andindefinite—the Court can issue a limited mandamus for the Governor to discharge his function under Article 200 within a reasonable time period, without making any observations on the merits Student’s suicide: Top Delhi school suspends four of staff, govt to probe marked by seepage, the poor lighting, and the absence of air conditioning. The staff cite lack of finances and manpower. The museum depends on the state governmentforupkeep,andofficials say it needs urgent repairs but funds are scarce. “It’s true that the rooms where Chattopadhyay’s personal items are kept — including original pictures of his family — need upkeep,” Ratan Kumar Nandi, director of the »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 New Delhi statements, said the State Department has made a determination approving a possible ForeignMilitarySaletoIndiaof Excalibur Projectiles and related equipment at an estimated cost of $47.1 million and of the Javelin Missile System andrelatedequipmentatanestimated cost of $45.7 million. The Defence Security »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2