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'Announced and published book not same': Penguin's fresh clarification amid Naravane memoir row
Amid a controversy over General Naravane’s memoir, Penguin Random House India clarified the stages of book publishing, stressing on their transparency policy.
Amid the ongoing controversy around the alleged unauthorised circulation of former Army chief General MM Naravane’s memoir, the Penguin Random House India (PRHI) issued a statement clarifying that an announced book, available for pre-order, and a published book are not the same.
The clarification comes shortly after PRHI issued a clarification stating that the publisher has the exclusive publishing rights to Naravane’s memoir ‘Four Stars of Destiny’ and that the book has not yet been published.
The publisher is facing the heat after an alleged circulation of pdf copies of Naravane’s memoir, which is yet to be cleared by the Ministry of Defence. The book has been at the heart of controvery in the latest Parliament session, where Congress leader Rahul Gandhi invoked excerpts from the book to attack the government. The Delhi Police has filed an FIR and launched a probe into the alleged illegal circulation.
Penguin Random House on Tuesday released a detailed note explaining how book publishing works.
What ‘published’ really means at PRHI
In its latest statement, PRHI outlined the distinction between an announced book, a book available for pre-order, a title scheduled for future release, and a published book, stressing that these stages are often misunderstood.
PRHI said a book is considered “published” only when it is available for purchase through retail channels, and not when it is merely announced, listed for pre-order, or assigned a future release date.
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The publisher said that announcing a book only signals intent to publish and does not mean the book exists in a saleable form, while pre-orders are a standard industry practice that allow advance bookings but do not indicate availability. It added in an X post that even a scheduled publication date does not mean the book has been released, reinforcing that publication occurs solely at the point of retail availability.
How Naravane’s unpublished memoir triggered controversy
The clarification came amid a Delhi Police investigation into the alleged illegal circulation of Naravane’s unpublished manuscript in digital and other formats, HT reported. An FIR has been registered and the case handed to the Special Cell to examine a possible leak or breach involving the yet-to-be-published book.
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Earlier, PRHI stated that it holds exclusive publishing rights to Four Stars of Destiny and that no authorised print or digital copies have been released, warning that any circulating versions constitute copyright infringement. The publisher said it would pursue legal remedies against unauthorised dissemination, HT reported.
The issue escalated after Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi accused either the publisher or General Naravane of “lying”, claiming the book was available online and citing a 2023 social media post by the former Army chief, as per an ANI report. Gandhi said he believed Naravane over the publisher and suggested the memoir contained content inconvenient for the government.
Lok Sabha disruption adds to controversy
The row became a political flashpoint after Gandhi attempted to quote from alleged excerpts of the memoir in the Lok Sabha, leading to objections from treasury benches and a ruling by the Speaker disallowing references to unpublished material.
The memoir was earlier slated for publication in April 2024, with pre-orders announced in 2023, but the release was later postponed, HT reported. Online listings currently show the book as unavailable, with pre-orders cancelled.
