Sonia Gandhi's big revelation about Narendra Modi: 'He tends to look away'
Rare insights into Sonia Gandhi's interactions with PM Modi unveiled in new book
Dubai: Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi has offered a rare insight into her relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, claiming that he tends to avoid eye contact when the two meet at official gatherings.
In her newly released memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, Gandhi says she has had practically no personal interaction with Modi despite his more than 12 years as Prime Minister and their years of political rivalry.
Gandhi writes that their encounters are largely restricted to formal gatherings, including meetings in the Speaker's chamber at the end of Parliament sessions, where leaders of major political parties traditionally come together.
She recalls that they exchange a formal namaste when they meet, but says Modi tends to look away rather than maintain eye contact. She contrasts this with the cordial relationships that political leaders from opposing parties maintained in earlier years.
Their conversations, she says, have rarely extended beyond brief exchanges. On occasions when she returned after hospital treatment, Modi reportedly asked about her health. They have also exchanged formal birthday and New Year greetings.
Two different visions of India
Beyond their limited personal interaction, Gandhi uses the memoir to highlight what she describes as fundamental ideological differences between herself and the Prime Minister.
She says their political differences are not personal but reflect competing visions for India's future. Gandhi describes her vision as one based on inclusiveness, secularism, equality and social justice, while arguing that Modi's outlook has been shaped by the ideology of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
She also criticizes Modi's language in Parliament, saying his remarks sometimes resemble the rhetoric he uses at public rallies. Gandhi further questions the BJP's stated political ambition of creating a Congress-free India.
However, she acknowledges that Modi rose through the RSS from an underprivileged background, while questioning aspects of the humble beginnings portrayed by his public relations team.
Published by HarperCollins India, Belonging: A Journey of Love was released on November 10. The 544-page memoir traces Gandhi's journey from her childhood in Italy to her marriage to former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and her eventual rise in Indian politics.
The book also revisits family tragedies, her relationship with Indira Gandhi and the political events that shaped her life.
With inputs from IANS
