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Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s upcoming memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, has found a new publisher in HarperCollins India after a sudden fallout with Penguin Random House India over editorial differences. HarperCollins announced on Friday, September 4, that it will publish the book on November 10, 2026.
The development comes days after Penguin Random House India (PRHI) pulled back from releasing the title, citing an impasse over "a particular issue" during the editing process.
The book was originally announced in mid-August by US publisher Alfred A. Knopf as a global release, with PRHI handling the Indian edition and planning a print run of 100,000 copies. However, negotiations stalled during editorial review. News reports, citing sources, indicated that differences arose over political commentary in the manuscript, including Sonia Gandhi’s observations about Prime Minister Narendra Modi during official meetings, her thoughts on being called certain derogatory names by Modi during campaigning, her perspective on India-China relations, and her views on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
The fallout sparked sharp political debate. Congress leaders, including Ashok Gehlot and Kamal Nath, alleged that PRHI gave in to government pressure to edit sensitive sections. PRHI spokesperson Pallavi Narayan strongly denied these claims, stating that because the embargoed manuscript was handled under strict confidentiality, there was "no external pressure whatsoever." PRHI maintained that while changes were agreed upon on several points, the parties could not reach an understanding on one final issue, leading Gandhi’s team to withdraw from the contract.
HarperCollins India stepped in shortly after to acquire the publishing rights without requesting content changes. In its official announcement, the publisher described the memoir as a riveting account that "seamlessly weaves the personal with the political." The book promises a candid look into Sonia Gandhi’s early childhood in post-war Italy, her romance with Rajiv Gandhi, and the personal tragedies that reshaped her life and thrust her into Indian politics.
The memoir remains one of the year’s most anticipated political releases, offering an inside account of modern Indian history from one of the country's most reticent leaders.
