Did Penguin India give in to govt pressure to not publish Sonia memoir?

Penguin India has had the dubious record of pulping Indologist Wendy Doniger’s book under pressure; it also listed and then disowned the book authored by India’s former Army chief Gen. M.M. Naravane (retd), and also backed out from publishing Joe Sacco’s graphic novel on the Muzaffarnagar riots  

Reacting to a report in the Indian Express on Friday, 28 August, Penguin Random House India in a statement denied that it was the publisher of Sonia Gandhi’s much-awaited Belonging - A Journey of Love, scheduled for a global launch on 10 November by American publishers Alfred Knopf. Ritu Sarin’s report in the Indian Express claimed that Penguin India had backed out after the author refused to change or delete portions recommended by the publisher. 

In a statement, however, Penguin India virtually admitted that it was to publish the book in India. '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,' the statement read. It also gave away the fact that it 'remained willing and keen to publish the book'.  

Congress leaders rubbished the alibi and pointed out that Penguin Random House India is the Indian arm of Alfred Knopf. Once Knopf had finalised the text and undertaken to publish and launch the book, for the Indian arm to claim that it had found factual inaccuracies in the text was not tenable, they said. 

HarperCollins is reportedly close to finalising an agreement to publish and distribute the book in India, media reports suggested. Hindustan Times reported online later in the afternoon, 'Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s book deal with Penguin Random House India (PRHI) fell through as she refused to make changes or deletions of references to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s ideological fount, and Chinese intrusions, HT has learnt. Gandhi, 79, maintained that it is her story and there was no question of allowing any distortions to her telling of her life, a person aware of the matter said.' 

Sections that PRHI wanted removed included Gandhi's recollections of her meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and what she had observed. The HT report added that she has gone into details about his comments about her and cited one calling her a “Jersey cow” at a public rally in Gujarat in 2004.

PRHI also objected to Gandhi’s references to the India-China relationship and China's reported intrusions into Indian territory. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, have been demanding the government come clean on the situation at the Line of Actual Control with China, accusing the government of making false claims. 

'The real issue is that pressure was put on Penguin India to remove the portions related to Modi, the RSS, and the occupation of Indian territory by China during Modi's rule. This is a murder of democracy. Why is this truth being hidden from the people of India? Will the Modi government alter even the facts by pressuring publishers?' posted former Rajasthan chief minister and senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot. 

The Congress also dismissed the statement. 'If Penguin worldwide has published, then... [PRHI] claim of fact-checking is ridiculous.' 

Author and columnist Vir Sangvi reacted by saying, 'Knopf is happy publishing the book without the editorial ‘suggestions’ that Penguin India says are its ‘prerogative’. The problems seem limited to the Indian edition. And to Penguin India. I cannot think of another explanation for Penguin’s behaviour apart from the obvious one.'