Sonia Gandhi Releases Belonging Memoir Amid Emergency and Publishing Row

Sonia Gandhi presents Belonging: A Journey of Love as a personal account, not a political book. Ahead of its November 10 release, NDTV Top Stories reported that HarperCollins India would publish the memoir, ending uncertainty over its domestic publication after an impasse between her representatives and Penguin.

The personal material includes her early experiences with Indian food and life with the Nehru-Gandhi family. Mint reported on November 7 that HarperCollins India had shared excerpts tracing those experiences. But the launch also brought scrutiny of her account of the Emergency and her criticism of the government.

On November 6, an interview with The Hindu set out both the personal and political sides of Gandhi's account. She accused the BJP of doing great damage to India's fabric, placing criticism of the ruling party alongside discussion of her life.

On November 7, The New Indian Express reported Gandhi's claim that Penguin had been uneasy with criticism of the government in the manuscript. That is her explanation of the publishing dispute; the supplied coverage does not include Penguin's response.

The same day, India Today reported that Gandhi called the Emergency a mistake and said Sanjay added to the damage. Those remarks became a central point of contention around the book.

By November 8, Gandhi was stressing the distinction between her purpose and the political reaction. NDTV Top Stories reported her explanation that this was not a political book, while confirming its scheduled release through HarperCollins India.

On November 10, coverage turned to her decision not to become prime minister in 2004. Indian Express highlighted her account of conflicting feelings about rejecting the role and answering a sense of duty. NDTV India reported that Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi felt she should not take the post.

The memoir was released on November 10, according to Times now, with Gandhi's explanation of choosing Manmohan Singh among its political disclosures. India News also reported her account of a clear division of responsibilities during the UPA years: Singh handled government while she focused on the party.

The release has not settled the argument over her treatment of history. The Hindu reported that the BJP accused Gandhi of trying to justify the Emergency and said the memoir should have been named "Whitewashing". Gandhi's description of the book as personal now sits alongside a public dispute over its political judgments.