Questioning Penguin Random House India’s position that the book has not been released, Gandhi claimed that “either MM Naravane is lying, or Penguin is lying.”
The remarks come amid an intensifying political and legal storm after Delhi Police registered an FIR over the alleged circulation of a pre-print or digital version of the unpublished manuscript on social media and other platforms.
Speaking on the issue in a press interaction, Gandhi said: “MM Naravane has posted on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter) saying, ‘Hello friends, my book is available now. Follow the link. Happy reading’. Either MM Naravane is lying, or Penguin is lying. I chose to believe the Army Chief. One of them is lying. Will you believe Penguin over MM Naravane? There are certain things in the book which in inconvenient for the government.”
He further referred to a protest poster displayed by Opposition MPs, adding: “Indo-US Trade deal happened because MM Naravane’s book, Epstein, and many more”.
Also read: Penguin India says ‘Four Stars of Destiny’ unpublished, threatens legal action over circulating copies
Penguin India warns of action over unpublished book
Penguin Random House India has maintained that the memoir has not been published in any format and said it holds the sole publishing rights. The company warned that any copies currently circulating, print, digital, or PDF, would amount to copyright infringement and could invite legal action.The clarification followed reports that excerpts or purported copies of the manuscript were being shared publicly, prompting the police probe.
Moreover, Police registered a case after information surfaced online suggesting a pre-print copy of Four Stars of Destiny was being circulated despite lacking mandatory clearance from competent authorities. A PDF version of a typeset manuscript was also found available on certain websites during preliminary verification.
The issue has already triggered disruptions in Parliament, where Gandhi earlier attempted to cite the unpublished memoir, intensifying the political confrontation between the Opposition and the government.
Naravane’s memoir–once slated for release and later held up pending government approval–has become the centre of a political flashpoint after Gandhi used alleged excerpts to criticise the government’s handling of the 2020 India-China standoff.
