Penguin Clarifies Pre-Order vs Published Book Amid Rahul Gandhi-Naravane Row

Penguin Random House clarifies the difference between a book being available for pre-order and its official publication amid the Rahul Gandhi-Naravane memoir controversy.
on Aug 11, 2026

Penguin Gives Clarification on Pre-Order Book Not Being Published in Gandhi-Naravane Row

After a row between Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and ex-Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane over his autobiography titled Four Stars of Destiny, Penguin Random House India has made a clarification regarding a pre-order book.

The clarification by the publisher came after Rahul Gandhi challenged the claim by Penguin about the non-availability of the book for purchase. This was after Gandhi cited a previous post on social media by General Naravane indicating that the book was available to the readers.

In its statement issued on social media, Penguin Random House clarified that a book is only published once it is available for purchase.

Pre-ordering of a book “is a regular practice in publishing,” Penguin explained. The publisher further clarified that once a book is available for pre-ordering, it does not necessarily mean that the book has been published and/or is publicly available.

As per the publishing company, an announced title, a title which is up for pre-orders and the actual book itself are three different steps in the publishing process.

Dispute over Memoirs of General Naravane

The clarification followed Rahul Gandhi’s query about the status of “Four Stars of Destiny” during his interaction with the press outside the Parliament House.

In his statement, Gandhi mentioned a post made by General Naravane in the year 2023, wherein the former Army Chief suggested that his memoirs were already out and he was encouraging people to buy them.

Either the former Army Chief or the publisher had erred, according to him, while stating that he trusted the version provided by Gen. Naravane.

The matter got even more prominence after Gandhi tried to make references to a pre-print version of the book while speaking in Lok Sabha. The Treasury bench members objected to the use of information from an unpublished book, as a result of which the Speaker made it clear that the opposition leader could not make references from unpublished material.

"Penguin says no official copies were released"

As previously reported by Penguin Random House India, it maintains that it holds exclusive rights for publishing "Four Stars of Destiny".

The publication also states that no copies of the book had been officially released to the public market in either printed or digital format.

In addition, it warns that any copies of the book available online or otherwise are in violation of copyright law. The publication further stated that it would be taking legal action against any such unauthorized copies of the book.

The publication says that the statement was issued to put their stand on record.

Investigation into allegations of distribution of pre-print version of memoir
The issue has also prompted an investigation by the police into the reports regarding the distribution of pre-print version of the memoir.

Delhi Police have taken cognisance of the social media posts and reports regarding the distribution of pre-print copy of 'Four Stars of Destiny' prior to its official approval. An FIR has been filed by the Special Cell regarding the breach of publication of a document that has not been approved yet.

An investigation is underway to find out how the pre-print version of the memoir came into existence.
The latest clarification from Penguin is in regard to the difference between the pre-ordering of a book and its publication.