New Delhi: Penguin Random House India has clarified that it will not publish Sonia Gandhi’s upcoming memoir Belonging: A Journey of Love in India, while rejecting reports that it backed out of the project because the Congress leader declined proposed editorial changes.
The clarification comes amid reports of discussions between the publisher and Gandhi over the manuscript. Penguin acknowledged that it had been interested in publishing the memoir but declined to disclose details of its conversations with the author, citing confidentiality.
It added that during the discussions, its position remained that it was “willing and keen to publish the book”. The publisher said it would not comment further on its confidential discussions with Gandhi.
In a statement issued through Knopf, Gandhi described the book as an attempt to look back at her personal experiences and the political and social changes she witnessed during her decades in India.
Gandhi said the personal tragedies she experienced eventually drew her into public life and politics. She later became the longest-serving president of the Congress party and played a central role in Indian politics for several decades, while declining the opportunity to become prime minister after the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance won the 2004 general election.
Reflecting on the process of writing the memoir, Gandhi said it was difficult because it required her to revisit experiences and emotions she had kept private for years.
