New Delhi: Despite being on opposite sides of the political divide for more than a decade, Sonia Gandhi says her interactions with Prime Minister Narendra
Modi have been limited. In her 544-page memoir, the former Congress president also acknowledges that she shares some common ground with the Prime Minister. “To this day, I’ve had practically no real contact with him. We meet at semi-official gatherings — for instance, at the Speaker’s chamber,” Gandhi writes in her memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love. Gandhi further claims that PM Modi tends to avoid eye contact with her. "When he comes face-to-face with me, we greet each other with a formal namaste. This is different from the past, when leaders across party divides would treat one another with cordiality. He tends to look away, avoiding eye contact,” she writes.
In a small Greek restaurant in Cambridge my journey of love began. Rajiv and I created a world filled with love, laughter and memories. On 10th November, I share that world with you. https://t.co/zvN5Rqqstf
— Sonia Gandhi (@SoniaGandhi) October 24, 2026
Notably, the 544-page memoir hit bookstores across India on Tuesday (November 10). The book also sheds light on Gandhi's views on the ideological differences that have shaped her political equation with the Prime Minister.
Gandhi says their political rivalry stems from differences in their visions for India's future rather than any personal differences between them.
"He was fighting for his vision of India, and I for mine: an India against hegemony, an India that stands for inclusiveness, secularism, and social justice. It wasn't personal," she writes.
The former Congress president also acknowledges some common ground with PM Modi. While their political views differ widely, Gandhi points to aspects of Modi's journey that she says she can relate to. She recalls feeling uncomfortable in Delhi's elite social and political circles, where conversations often seemed far removed from the everyday struggles of ordinary people.
"There were elements of his discomfort with the ruling elite of our times that I, too, had come to understand well," she writes.
Gandhi notes that Modi came from an underprivileged background and gradually rose through the ranks of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to reach a position of power.
"He had certainly worked his way to power within the RSS from an underprivileged world," she writes.
She also links Modi's criticism of India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, to the influence of his upbringing and ideological conditioning within the RSS.
Gandhi's memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, was released in bookstores across India on Tuesday. Publisher HarperCollins India said the book is available at several outlets nationwide, including Higginbotham in Chennai, Bahrisons and Midland in Delhi, The White Crow and Title Waves in Mumbai, Mathrubhumi Books in Kerala, Blossoms and The Bookworm in Karnataka, as well as Crossword stores across Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi-NCR, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Gujarat and Kerala.
On Tuesday, the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) chairperson shared excerpts from her newly released memoir.
