Delhi Police Probe Alleged Leak of Unpublished Army Chief Memoir as Publisher Warns Against Illegal Circulation
Indian authorities have launched an investigation into the alleged leak and unauthorised circulation of an unpublished memoir by former Indian Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane, after digital copies of the book were found circulating online.
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| Image Source: Arvind Gunasekar |
Amid the inquiry, Penguin Random House India issued a formal statement asserting its exclusive publishing rights over the book and clarifying that the memoir has not gone into publication. The publisher stated that “no copies of the book — in print or digital form — have been published, distributed, sold, or otherwise made available to the public by Penguin Random House India.”
The statement further said that “any copies of the book currently in circulation, in whole or in part, whether in print, digital, PDF, or any other format, online or offline, on any platform, constitute an infringement” of the publisher’s copyright.
It added that such circulation “must immediately be ceased” and that Penguin Random House India “shall be exercising remedies available in law against the illegal and unauthorised dissemination of the book.” The publisher said the statement was being issued “to place the publisher’s position on record.”
The memoir is authored by General Naravane, who served as Chief of the Army Staff from 2019 to 2022. No official publication date for the book has been announced, and the publisher has not indicated that any advance or review copies were authorised for public circulation.
The inquiry, sources said, will focus on how the unpublished manuscript entered the public domain, including whether the leak occurred through unauthorised access to pre-publication material or through unlawful digital reproduction and sharing.
Neither the publisher nor the author has commented on whether the publication schedule of Four Stars of Destiny will be affected by the investigation.