BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said whether Sonia Gandhi’s book is a memoir or fiction is a matter for the author and publisher to decide. “If a work labelled as a memoir turns out to be fiction, the publisher will certainly assess that before making a decision. I feel that if you attempt to politicise a work presented as a memoir, questions will inevitably be raised,” he said.
Sonia Gandhi’s book deal with Penguin Random House India fell through after she refused to make changes or deletions to references to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s ideological fount, and Chinese intrusions, HT reported earlier.
BJP National Spokesperson CR Kesavan said Congress leaders were attempting to “spin stories and manufacture a false narrative of fear” over the release of Sonia Gandhi’s memoir. He described the allegations as “not merely ironic” but “glaringly hypocritical.”
Kesavan cited the late K Natwar Singh’s 2014 autobiography One Life Is Not Enough, saying excerpts from the book “clearly states how uneasy and uncomfortable the Nehru-Gandhi family was about his account of certain events in May 2004, before the UPA Government was sworn in.”
The attempts by Congress leaders to spin stories and manufacture a false narrative of fear over the release of Smt. Sonia Gandhi’s memoir are not merely ironic — they are glaringly hypocritical. Excerpts from the late Shri. K. Natwar Singh’s 2014 autobiography ‘One Life Is Not… pic.twitter.com/Jye8sbjXde
— C.R.Kesavan (@crkesavan) August 29, 2026
He said Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra decided to meet Natwar Singh before the book’s release, describing the visit as sudden after eight and a half years. “Why was Sonia Gandhi so apprehensive about what Shri. Natwar Singh would write in his book?” he asked.
Drawing a parallel with the present controversy, Kesavan questioned which portions of Sonia Gandhi’s memoir required fact-checking and why. “The moot point in the context of Smt. Sonia Gandhi’s memoirs is: which portions of her memoir warranted fact-checking and why so?” he said.
Kesavan also questioned Congress leaders over what he described as their concerns about making public 51 carton boxes of Jawaharlal Nehru’s correspondence, including his letters to Edwina Mountbatten. He said Congress leaders should explain “the real reason why the Congress first family is nervous and jittery to make public” the correspondence.
Penguin Random House India official statement. pic.twitter.com/2g8y3F1p7m
— Penguin India (@PenguinIndia) August 28, 2026
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi alleged that Penguin India was willing to publish Exam Warriors and several books on the RSS but had become reluctant over Sonia Gandhi’s memoir. “No doubt there are those in the BJP government who have now become afraid of a book being being read by the people of India,” Gogoi said.
Congress MP Dr Akhilesh Prasad Singh said no publisher, including Penguin, could influence an author or pressure them to remove or include specific content. He said this was evident and suggested that this was why Sonia Gandhi declined.
Singh also referred to the previous session of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, saying Rahul Gandhi had raised the issue of Naravane’s book, which he alleged was effectively being suppressed and prevented from being read by the government. He said the same kind of pressure was likely at play in the present case.
Rajasthan Congress leader Ashok Gehlot said Penguin Worldwide was ready to publish Sonia Gandhi’s upcoming book worldwide in its original form, while Penguin Random House India wanted changes for its launch in India.
“After all, what is the reason or what pressure is there that what is being published across the world cannot be published in India?” Gehlot asked.
Gehlot described Sonia Gandhi’s life as “an example of sacrifice and dedication” and said that “the integrity and dignity with which she has served the country is exemplary.”
He alleged that suppressing Sonia Gandhi’s book under pressure amounted to “the murder of freedom of expression.” Gehlot further alleged that pressure was put on Penguin India to remove portions concerning Modi, the RSS, and the occupation of Indian territory by China during Modi’s rule.
“This is the murder of democracy,” Gehlot alleged. He questioned why the alleged truth was being hidden from the people of India and asked whether the Modi government would alter even facts by pressuring publishers.
Amid the political dispute, Penguin Random House India said on Friday that it had been “keen to publish” Sonia Gandhi’s memoir throughout “the relevant discussions”, while maintaining that fact-checking authors was both its “prerogative and responsibility.”
The company clarified that Penguin Random House India is not the publisher of Belonging in India, days after American publisher Alfred A Knopf, an imprint of Penguin Random House, announced that the book would be released on November 10.
The statement followed a report by The Indian Express claiming that the publisher backed out after Sonia Gandhi refused “editorial changes” to the manuscript.
“Penguin Random House India is not the publisher of Belonging in India. Any suggestion that Penguin Random House India decided not to publish Belonging because the author declined editorial changes does not accurately reflect the circumstances,” the company said.
“As a publisher, it is both our prerogative and our responsibility to fact check and provide authors with recommendations that are in the best interests of their books. This is a normal part of the publishing process. Throughout the relevant discussions, Penguin Random House India's position was that we remained willing and keen to publish the book,” it said.
The dispute has now placed Sonia Gandhi’s memoir at the centre of a political clash over publishing decisions, alleged pressure, fact-checking and freedom of expression, with both the BJP and Congress defending sharply different accounts of why the book will not be published by Penguin Random House India.
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