Unapproved & Unseen: How Did Rahul Gandhi Get a Hard Copy of a Book That Was Never Published?

In 2026, a hardcover copy of India's former Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General MM Naravane's memoir, 'Four Stars of Destiny', was unexpectedly seen in Parliament, held by Rahul Gandhi. The sight of the book, which was supposed to be unpublished due to a lack of clearance from the Ministry of Defence, raised questions about how it reached Gandhi. Previously, excerpts had been reported by PTI, but the physical book was not supposed to exist, according to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.In 2024, 'Four Stars of Destiny' was set for a release, with bookstores taking pre-orders and readers pre-booking it online. However, the launch was halted. The publisher of the book is Penguin Random House India.As the controversy raged, Penguin Random House India said

no copies of the book - in print or digital form - have been published, distributed, sold, or otherwise made available to the public."In light of recent public discourse and media reporting, Penguin Random House India would like to clarify that we hold the sole publishing rights for the book Four Stars of Destiny, a memoir by General Manoj Mukund Naravane, former Chief of the Indian Army. We wish to make it clear that the book has not gone into publication..." it clarified.Then how did a book which "does not exist" reach Rahul Gandhi?

Did the book ever get clearance?

A defence-related manuscript needs clearance from the Ministry of Defence (MoD). Between 2020 and 2024, the Defence Ministry has cleared 35 books, with Four Stars of Destiny remaining the only manuscript still pending, according to a report in The Indian Express. Then, did a defence-related manuscript get converted into a book without the requisite approvals?

https://youtu.be/alzoZyzECiY

The contents and a few excerpts from the memoir, were quoted by news agency PTI in 2023. It is the manuscript, and not a physical copy of the book, that was accessed by The Caravan magazine, whose report Rahul Gandhi wanted to quote from in the Lok Sabha.In an interview with The Wire, the author of the article, Sushant Singh, said he had written to the MoD, Gen Naravane, and Penguin, well in advance before the article appeared in the magazine. However, none replied to his emails.Meanwhile, the Delhi Police on Monday initiated an investigation by its Special Cell into the "purported leak or breach of a yet-to-be-approved" copy of Gen Naravane's memoir."The Delhi Police has taken cognisance of information circulating on social media platforms and online news forums claiming that a pre-print copy of a book titled Four Stars of Destiny is being circulated without mandatory clearance from competent authorities," it said.