Disagreement over certain portions; Penguin India withdraws from Sonia Gandhi memoir

NEW DELHI: Penguin Random House India reportedly pulled out of publishing Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's autobiographical memoir 'Belonging: A Journey of Love' in India. It is said that editorial disputes and Sonia Gandhi not accepting the publisher's suggestion to make changes in the manuscript led to the decision.

Penguin Random House India clarified their interest in publishing the book and could not comment on discussions between the publisher and the author. The global release of the book is scheduled for November 10. The decision was made to print one lakh copies as the first edition of the book, which will be published by Alfred A. Knopf in the United States. With Penguin's withdrawal, British-American publisher HarperCollins and others are in the market for the publishing rights in India.

The book is about Sonia Gandhi's personal and political life and her experiences in India over six decades. The publishers stated that the book would tell the story of her decisions and actions, beyond the details revealed about her family. A national media outlet reported that the publishers in India had requested that sections on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the RSS, BJP, and India-China border disputes be omitted or changed, which Sonia refused.