Pranab Mukherjee hinted at desire to become PM, which ‘shocked’ me, writes Sonia Gandhi

Sonia Gandhi and Pranab Mukherjee. File | Photo credit: PTI

Former president Pranab Mukherjee “shocked” Sonia Gandhi by hinting at his “long-term desire” to become prime minister during an interview with her in 2010, hinting that it might be time for a “change at the top”, the former Congress president wrote in her memoir Belonging: A Journey of Love.

Also read | Sonia Gandhi’s memoir: How a love story grew into a deep connection with India

The book, published by HarperCollins, was made available in bookstores on Tuesday (November 10, 2026), but the official launch is likely to take place on November 16.

Mukherjee, then a senior member of Manmohan Singh’s cabinet, had serious differences with the then finance minister P. Chidambaram. After the meetings of the Congress Strategy Group, which was set up to discuss parliamentary affairs, he sometimes lingered for talks with Mrs. Gandhi.

“On one occasion, in 2010, I think after expressing his frustration, he shocked me by suggesting that it might be time for a change at the top, which I took to be an indication of his long-held desire to be prime minister,” she wrote.

“I gently changed the subject, and while he may have been disappointed, he never gave me the feeling that he held it against me,” she added.

The late Mukherjee, who served in Indira Gandhi’s cabinet in the 1970s, was part of the core group that met weekly with Dr. Singh to coordinate the functioning of the government and the party. Other members included Arjun Singh, AK Antony and Ahmed Patel.

Mrs Gandhi says she visited Mukherjee often after he became president in 2012, mainly to talk to the “erudite and well-informed politician he always remained”.

Sharmistha Mukherjee, daughter of the late President, hit out at Mrs Gandhi and said being ambitious was not a crime.

“What is there to be shocked about?” she asked in a post on X in response to Mrs Gandhi’s remarks.

“Is it a crime to be ambitious, especially when that ‘ambition’ has been backed by decades of experience in politics and governance, hard work and a brilliant mind? Once, when he asked me if he wanted to become Prime Minister, he very frankly replied that ‘any politician worth his salt has such ambitions,'” she wrote.

The memoir gives a first-hand account of the personal and political journey of one of India’s “most reticent politicians”.

On the relationship with Modi

Of her relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mrs Gandhi said she had “virtually no real contact” with him. They exchange formal namastes at semi-official meetings, but “he tends to look away and avoid eye contact,” she wrote.

The memoir also recounted her strained relationship with Maneka Gandhi and described how domestic differences gradually spilled over into politics after her marriage to Sanjay Gandhi. She recalled Indira Gandhi’s displeasure with Mrs. Manek’s political activities, especially after the Emergency, and the eventual severance of ties when the younger daughter-in-law left the family home.

Published – 10 Nov 2026 21:12 IST