Punjab Newsline | New Delhi
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi’s memoir, ‘Belonging: A Journey of Love’, hit bookstores on Tuesday without any formal launch event. Describing the book as a deeply personal account, Sonia Gandhi has clarified that it is not a political memoir.
One of the major revelations in the book concerns her decision to turn down the Prime Minister’s post following the Congress-led alliance’s victory in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections.
Sonia Gandhi writes that she was initially firmly opposed to accepting the top constitutional position. However, following intense pressure from alliance partners, she reluctantly gave a hesitant approval before eventually deciding to decline the offer altogether.
According to a PTI report, the memoir also sheds light on the emotional and personal reasons behind her decision. Sonia Gandhi reveals that her children, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, were strongly against the idea of their mother becoming Prime Minister.
Having witnessed the brutal assassination of their grandmother, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and the killing of their father, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, in a bomb blast, the two feared that occupying the country's highest political office would put their mother's life at serious risk.
In the memoir, Sonia Gandhi describes the book as the story of a place she came to consider home and the people she came to know and love.
She writes that she has kept much of her inner world private throughout her life. Although personal grief drew her into politics, she consistently tried to protect her private life.
Sonia Gandhi also acknowledges that writing openly about her life was an extremely difficult task. She observes that much has been written about her family, but little effort has been made to understand who they really were as individuals.
In the book, she also reflects on the transformation of India over more than five decades, recalling how she initially witnessed the country’s changes from the sidelines before becoming part of its political and social centre.
Earlier, on October 24, Sonia Gandhi shared a video on social media in which she hinted that the release of her memoir would generate considerable discussion.
"People have been telling my story for decades. Now it is my turn to tell my story," she said, adding that there would be some 'tamasha' when the book arrived.
Through ‘Belonging: A Journey of Love’, Sonia Gandhi offers readers a personal account of her family, private experiences, grief and journey in India, while revisiting some of the most defining moments of her life.
