Rahul Gandhi on Sonia Gandhi memoir row

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said he had “no interest” in the controversy surrounding the upcoming memoir of his mother and former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, saying his sole focus at present was the “crime” committed against party chief Mallikarjun Kharge.The Lok Sabha leader of opposition was responding to a reporter’s question at his press conference on the “purification” ritual conducted after Kharge’s rally in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, earlier this month.“I call it a digression strategy. I have absolutely no interest in that right now. My interest lies in the crime that has been committed against Kharge ji,” Rahul Gandhi said, demeing “justice” for the veteran politican.The controversy surrounding Sonia Gandhi’s biography, titled “Belonging,” arose from reports that publisher Penguin Random House India had declined to publish the book after she rejected proposed editorial changes.However, Penguin Random House India clarified in a statement on Friday that it was 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 publisher said in a statement.However, it acknowledged that it remained “keen to publish the book”, while stressing that fact-checking and recommending editorial changes were part of its responsibility as a publisher.“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.

We will not comment further on confidential discussions with the author,” the statement added.On August 20, the birth anniversary of his father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi expressed his excitement over Sonia Gandhi’s biography.“I am happy, and so proud, that your story—‘Belonging: A Journey of Love’—will finally be read by the millions of people who love you. I know how hard it was for someone as private as you to tell the world your beautiful story. Today, on his birthday, I can see Papa smiling and looking down proudly at his beautiful Sonia,” the Congress MP wrote on X.The book is scheduled to be published on November 10.