'Not Publishing Sonia Gandhi's Book, Were Keen To': Penguin On 'Belonging'

Penguin Random House India is categorial in its response: "It's not the publisher of 'Belonging: A Journey of Love', Sonia Gandhi's upcoming memoir, in India". 

The statement from Penguin comes amid reports that the publisher backed out after Sonia Gandhi refused "editorial" changes.

"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 in a statement.

The publisher did acknowledge that they were "keen to publish the book", adding that it is their responsibility to fact check authors and provide recommendations, hinting at the discussion around the book with Sonia Gandhi.  

Read | Manmohan Singh, Bachchans, And Other Secrets Of 10 Janpath: The Sonia Gandhi Story

"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," the statement said.

The publisher though refused to divulge the details of the discussion with the author. 

"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.

Penguin Random House India official statement. pic.twitter.com/2g8y3F1p7m

— Penguin India (@PenguinIndia) August 28, 2026

With Penguin out of the picture, several Indian publishers are now in the race to get the rights with HarperCollins reported to be close to finalising a deal to publish and distribute the book in India.

Publisher Alfred A Knopf, a giant in American publishing and an imprint of Penguin Random House, has announced that Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's memoir will be released on November 10.

"Much has been written about my family, but few narratives were able to reach into the truth of their motivations, their actions and even their very human failings," Sonia Gandhi said in a statement issued through Knopf. "In many ways, this book is a homage to their humanness. My story also offers readers a unique perspective of the social and political changes I have witnessed for six decades in the beautiful country of my belonging."

In "Belonging," Sonia Gandhi writes of her life being upended when her mother-in-law is assassinated in 1984 and succeeded by Rajiv Gandhi who seven years later was also murdered. 

Sonia Gandhi offers floral tributes to her late husband Rajiv Gandhi

Sonia Gandhi eventually entered politics and became the longest-serving president of the Congress while also turning down her party's offer to become prime minister. Her party lost power to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP in 2014.

A file photo of Sonia Gandhi with former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

"It was heartbreak and loss that threw me into the public world of politics. Up till then I had guarded my privacy fiercely," she said in her statement.

Sonia Gandhi, Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi, and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi at Vir Bhumi on the birth anniversary of ex-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, in New Delhi.

"Writing about my life did not come easily to me. It meant opening myself up, sharing moments and experiences I had always held deep inside," she said. "Yet as I gradually removed myself from the political sphere and looked back at all I had seen, the thread of love and loyalty that wove through my story began to define itself, from the simplicity of my childhood in small-town Italy, to the complexity of my years in India as the wife of Rajiv Gandhi and the daughter-in-law of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi."