Prez Pranab Mukherjee's second memoir released by VP

New Delhi, Jan 28: President Pranab Mukherjee's book in which reminisces about crucial events of his political life including Indira Gandhi's assassination, Babri Masjid demolition, operation Blue Star and his ouster from Rajiv Gandhi's Cabinet was released today by Vice President Hamid Ansari.

The President has chronicled some momentous developments of the 1980s and 1990s, considered most turbulent in India's post independence history, in the book--The Turbulent Years: 1980-1996. Mukherjee has termed his exit from the Rajiv Gandhi Cabinet and Congress party as a "fiasco" which he himself had created.

"I have candidly recognised in the book that I should have not ventured this because I was never a mass leader and I did not have the type of following which rebels from Congress like Ajay Mukherjee in 1960s or recently Mamata and in one sense Indira ji herself had," the President said.

Mukherjee sheds new light on every major political occurrence of the time--from Rajiv Gandhi's ascendance as Prime Minister to the emergence of P V Narsimha Rao as leader of the nation.

"It is for the readers to read and come to their own conclusion.I did not deliberately speak on (matters) which are highly confidential...I had a bit conservative approach. As and when facts will be released by the government, the people would come to know. Not from somebody's account who was in the government," he said.

This book is second part of his memoirs after entering political life. Senior BJP leader L K Advani, former CAG Vinod Rai, former Union Minister Karan Singh were among those present at the function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

PTI