Penguin India denies external pressure over Sonia Gandhi memoir: 'Impasse on particular issue'

Penguin Random House India (PRHI) firmly denied allegations of external pressure influencing their decision not to publish Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's memoir. This denial follows a controversy sparked by the anticipated release of the book, "Belonging: A Journey of Love." The publishing house clarified that an impasse arose during discussions about a specific issue, although they declined to disclose the nature of this disagreement.

PRHI spokesperson Pallavi Narayan stated that the publisher was keen on acquiring and publishing the memoir, which was a significant achievement for the company. According to Narayan, the publication was a hard-fought acquisition, and the publisher strongly emphasized that there was no external pressure. They affirmed that the manuscript underwent its standard editorial process, with some changes agreed upon, while others were accepted as the author's position.

Ultimately, an understanding could not be reached on the particular issue, leading the author's team to inform PRHI that they did not wish to proceed with the publication.