'Pranab knew he wouldn't become PM'

A delicate and often tumultuous working relationship with Sonia Gandhi, being underwhelmed by Rahul Gandhi's political abilities and finding him arrogant, and admiration for Prime Minister Narendra Modi - a new book has revealed some behind-the-scenes details of former President and veteran Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee's life.

- Sunetra Choudhury

Written by his daughter Sharmishtha Mukherjee and titled Pranab, My Father, the book draws on his diaries and conversations with his daughter, and covers his vast political career that began as a Bengal legislator in the 1950s and ended with his stint in Rashtrapati Bhavan. Mukherjee writes that Pranab Mukherjee continued to be politically active even after stepping down as President in 2017 till his death three years later.

The book said Pranab Mukherjee knew he would never become PM.

The first time the question arose when Indira Gandhi was assassinated in 1984. While political observers say Pranab Mukherjee expressed his keenness for the job, his diary, the book claims, suggest this was a baseless rumour. Mukherjee cites her father's diary noting to write that it was Congress leader Ghani Khan Choudhary who proposed the names of PV Narasimha Rao or Pranab Mukherjee, as the senior most members of the Cabinet, to take over.

But Pranab Mukherjee, according to the book, apparently said there was no problem if a non-Cabinet member such as Rajiv Gandhi became PM. "Rajiv then asked, 'Do you think I can manage?' Pranab replied, 'Yes, you can. Besides, we are all there to help you. You will have everyone's support," Mukherjee writes in the book.

The book also explains the cordial but always interesting relationship between the Gandhis and Pranab Mukherjee.