Going by his pre-launch interview, Natwar has taken many swipes at Manmohan Singh in his book, validating the claims made by the ex-PM's media advisor Sanjaya Baru who wrote a similar book during the polls and triggered a storm. However, there was no response from Sonia about Natwar's claim that she along with Priyanka had met him to dissuade him from making the disclosure about Rahul having stopped her from assuming prime ministership - a claim that contradicted Sonia's version that it was because of her "inner voice" that she renounced the top political post.
Natwar's autobiography is the second of its kind in three months, after Baru's, that has turned Sonia into a butt of attacks with her description as the 'remote control' of UPA, the person who impeded the smooth governance of the Manmohan Singh regime and who had access to government files.The political memoirs and controversies they spark - Baru's book consistently topped the charts in the non-fiction category - may mark the advent of a new culture of politicians coming up with tell-all books. a genre which is mainstream abroad but has so far been alien in the Indian milieu which privileges discretion over history-telling. The trend could only be cemented if Sonia indeed writes her memoirs and that too soon.
Taking a cue from the party chief's aggressive "book threat", Congress accused Natwar of betrayal and of cheap book-selling gimmicks. "Natwar used to be apprised of sensitive issues and facts because of the post he occupied. Now, he is misusing facts or distorting them," Congress's Abhishek Singhvi said.
The spokesman said while personal meetings may have taken place, the party denied the content or the opinions expressed about those meetings. He said the author's claims should be seen through the prism of his unceremonious exit from the UPA government over the oil-for-food scam and his expulsion from the party later.
No comments:
Post a Comment