'Practically no...contact': Sonia Gandhi writes on PM Modi in memoir
What's the story
In her memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi writes about her limited interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She says they meet at official and semi-official events and exchange formal birthday and New Year greetings over the years. "Narendra Damodardas Modi has been the prime minister of India for more than 12 years as of this writing... To this day, I've had practically no real contact with him," she writes.
Different dynamics
PM Modi avoids eye contact
Gandhi notes that while they greet each other with a namaste, PM Modi avoids eye contact.
She says this is different from the cordiality shown by past leaders.
"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.
Ideological differences
Gandhi discusses contrasting visions for India
Gandhi also discusses their contrasting visions for India.
She writes that her idea of India is based on liberty and equality for all, while PM Modi's vision is shaped by the ideologues of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
"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," she writes.
Political ascent
Gandhi critiques PM Modi's coarse language in Parliament
Gandhi also reflects on PM Modi's political journey, saying he has worked his way up from an underprivileged background within the RSS.
She criticizes his coarse language in Parliament and his tirades against opposition leaders, particularly Jawaharlal Nehru.
"When speaking in Parliament, he (Modi) at times uses the same coarse language he employs in addressing a public rally," she writes.
Political critique
BJP's 'Congress-free India' agenda
Gandhi also critiques the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) agenda of a "Congress-free India."
She believes this antipathy is due to PM Modi's conditioning by the RSS.
"It has inculcated in its cadre a commitment to an exclusionary, hardened version of Hinduism that has been crafted into a political agenda," she writes.