‘Made it a point to speak frankly to each other’: Sonia Gandhi on her equation with Manmohan Singh

Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's memoir, 'Belonging: A Journey of Love', hit the bookstores on Tuesday. The memoir chronicles Sonia's journey from her childhood in Italy, life in India to her personal losses and her political journey as the leader of the Congress party. Here are some excerpts from the memoir:

On her equation with the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

"Both Dr Singh and I knew perfectly well that our opponents would lose no opportunity to try to create trouble between us. So, we made it a point to speak frankly to each other and sort out any differences or work problems. I always spoke my mind to him, and I felt that he, too, preferred to be open and straightforward. And so it remained throughout. I respected him as a trusted and experienced elder. I knew I could turn to him for guidance and advice on many matters and benefit from his wisdom, integrity and sincere concern for the disadvantaged. On one point, I was clear: he was the prime minister now and, while I could offer him my opinions or suggestions as party president, or even disagree with him, it was my duty to defer to him."


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Pranab Mukherjee's 'shocking' suggestion

"A core group met weekly with the PM (Manmohan Singh) to ensure coordination between the two (government and the party)... We also met regularly as members of the strategy group set up to discuss issues to be taken up in Parliament. Sometimes, Pranabji, as I always called him, would stay back for a chat. He had developed serious differences with the finance minister PC Chidambaram, and on one occasion in 2010, I think, after expressing his frustration, he shocked me by suggesting that perhaps it was time for a change at the top. I understood this as a hint of his long-held desire to become PM. I gently changed the subject and, although he may have been disappointed, he never made me feel that he held it against me. Our party did nominate him in 2012 as the UPA candidate for President, the highest office in our republic, and he was elected."

Rahul Gandhi's rocky elevation and what followed

"Finally, in 2017, the party elected Rahul president at its 84th plenary session after I resigned. Our adversaries had all along mounted an attack on him, supported behind the scenes by some dissatisfied people within our own party. Inevitably, there had been resistance to him from some sections of the old guard. His frank and outspoken views did not find favour with all. There were some who, like him, were pushing for younger leadership across the country so that the Congress could become a fighting force and others, who felt threatened and were unwilling to let go of their positions. Some wanted us to draw clear ideological lines against the BJP, while others feared that taking a stridently secular stand would damage us with the majority of the population. Differences within our ranks grew, proving damaging to the party, especially since the media was actively engaged in amplifying them. It broke my heart to witness the level of aggression Rahul had to endure."

'No real contact with Prime Minister Narendra Modi'

"Narendra Damodardas Modi has been the Prime Minister of India for more than 12 years as of this writing and is now in his third term in office. To this day, I have had practically no real contact with him. We meet at semi-official gatherings. For instance, at the end of every Parliament session, leaders of the major parties customarily gather in the Speaker's chamber. It is a very small room, and usually many people are present. But when he comes face to face with me, we greet each other with a formal namaste. This is different from the past, when leaders across party lines would treat one another with cordiality. He tends to look away, avoiding eye contact. On occasions when I had returned after a stint in hospital, he would ask, 'Theek hain aap?' And I would reply, 'Jee, ab main theek hoon, shukriya.' Apart from such brief exchanges, we have never really conversed, although we have exchanged formal birthday and New Year greetings over the years. We come from different ideological worlds."

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Maneka 'had confided her plan to a journalist friend in advance'

"The final showdown came after Maneka took part in a supposedly non-political rally in Lucknow, organised by dissidents while Mrs Gandhi was in London on an official trip. She had received messages from her office that Maneka was having her belongings moved out of her rooms, clearly preparing for her exit. On her return from London, my mother-in-law made her displeasure known, telling Maneka that, as part of the family, she could not continue engaging in disloyal political activities. She had to make a choice: either refrain or live elsewhere. She reiterated her position in a letter, to which Maneka responded with a missive full of accusations, obviously meant to damage her mother-in-law. It became clear that she was intent on creating a furore around her departure from the house, publicly placing the blame on Mrs Gandhi. She had confided her plan to a journalist friend weeks in advance."