Sonia Gandhi's Memoir Explores Politics and Personal Loss

On the morning of October 31, 1984, Sonia Gandhi was living in the prime minister's residence in Delhi when she heard gunfire in the garden. Her mother-in-law, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, had just left for her office and was assassinated by two of her bodyguards. Rushing to the path, Sonia saw Indira wounded in a white Ambassador car. After being rushed to the hospital, doctors confirmed the worst. Soon after, Rajiv Gandhi arrived from West Bengal to inform her that party leaders wanted him to become prime minister. Terrified for his safety, Sonia pleaded against it, but he was sworn in that evening. These events are detailed in sonia gandhi's new book, titled 'Belonging: A Journey of Love', which traces private devastation alongside public pressures.

Originally from a small Italian town, Sonia had met Rajiv in England, entering an Indian family that eventually made India feel like home. Following Indira's death, Rajiv was also assassinated in 1991, leaving Sonia to navigate grief and public duties. Memorial trust appearances became exhausting, and the Dalai Lama asked if she felt vengeful, to which she sobbed and answered in the negative. As the Congress party began losing ground and facing senior defections, pressure mounted for Sonia to enter politics herself. Although she disliked politics due to the losses it brought, she feared the rising Hindu nationalism threatening the secular vision her family fought to protect.

Entering Political Life and Refusing Power

To resolve her inner conflict, Sonia studied the Bhagavad Gita with a Sanskrit scholar in 1997, concluding that she must follow her duty without attachment to outcomes. Seven years later, after leading Congress to victory in the 2004 general election, she went to the presidential palace with Manmohan Singh to stake a claim to form a government. To the surprise of many who assumed she would become prime minister, she privately told an aide she would refuse the post, ignoring protests from party workers and colleagues.

Sonia Gandhi's memoir reveals the personal cost of political legacy and her reluctant entry into leadership.

Why it matters

This memoir offers a deeply personal defence of a prominent political family and explains the complex choices behind Sonia Gandhi's entry into leadership. It provides readers in India and South Asia with an intimate look at the inner workings and personal sacrifices tied to the nation's political history.