Does govt believe Penguin over Naravane?: Rahul’s fresh salvo over memoir row

The political storm over former Army chief General (Retd.) Manoj Mukund Naravane’s unpublished memoir has deepened, spilling from Parliament into the realm of criminal investigation, as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi intensified his attack on the government and publisher Penguin Random House India, accusing the BJP of suppressing what he called “inconvenient truths”.

Speaking to reporters after the Lok Sabha was adjourned amid repeated disruptions on Tuesday, the leader of Opposition claimed that Naravane’s memoir, Four Stars of Destiny, was already in the public domain and available on e-commerce platform Amazon — an assertion firmly denied by Penguin.

Rahul Gandhi also cited a 2023 social media post by the former army chief urging readers to go through memoirs detailing the events surrounding the 2020 Galwan clashes. “Either Penguin or the former army chief is lying; both cannot be right,” Rahul Gandhi said, adding that he trusted Naravane over the publisher.

The issue has paralysed proceedings in the Lok Sabha for over a week, with the opposition pressing to raise what it describes as “revelations” in the book, and the government blocking any discussion. The confrontation escalated on Monday when Rahul Gandhi waved what he claimed was a copy of the memoir within the Parliament complex, triggering fresh tensions and repeated adjournments.

The controversy took a sharper turn after the Delhi Police registered an FIR over the alleged circulation of the memoir’s contents on social media and online platforms, according to an official statement. The police action came hours after India Today reported that Gandhi had accessed what was described as a pre-publication manuscript of the book—material that had not received mandatory clearance from the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

As concerns over a possible breach mounted, Penguin Random House India stepped in to clarify that it holds exclusive publishing rights to Four Stars of Destiny and that the book has not been published in any form. The publisher said no copies—print or digital—have been distributed, sold or made available to the public, amid reports of unauthorised versions circulating online.

The episode unfolded against intense political sparring, with defence minister Rajnath Singh earlier telling Parliament that the book “does not exist”. In its statement, the Delhi Police said it had taken cognisance of information indicating that a pre-print version of the memoir was being shared without approval from competent authorities, noting that requisite clearances for publication were still pending.

“Upon verification, it was found that a PDF copy of a type-set book with the same title, apparently prepared by M/s Penguin Random House India Pvt Ltd, is available on certain websites,” the police said. It added that some online marketing platforms were displaying the finished book cover, creating the impression that the memoir was already available for purchase.

Terming the matter a serious breach, police said the case has been handed to the Special Cell for a comprehensive investigation into the alleged leak or unauthorised circulation of unpublished material linked to national security. The probe, officials said, is ongoing.

The political fallout has been swift and sharp. Last week, Rahul Gandhi’s display of the purported book copy inside Parliament triggered a political firestorm that culminated in the suspension of eight MPs for the remainder of the Budget session.

On Monday, Rahul Gandhi further sharpened his attack, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi avoided the Lok Sabha during the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address to escape questions surrounding Naravane’s memoir.

As investigators work to trace the origins of the alleged leak, the episode continues to reverberate across political and security circles, raising uneasy questions about information control, institutional clearances, and the blurred boundary between unpublished state-linked material and the public domain.