The Delhi Police has registered an FIR over the circulation of an unpublished book of former Chief of Army Staff Gen M M Naravane on social media, an official statement said Monday.
"The Delhi Police has taken cognisance of information circulating on social media platforms and online news forums claiming that a pre-print copy of a book titled 'Four Stars of Destiny' is being circulated without mandatory clearance from competent authorities," the statement said.
According to the police statement, it was also reported that the necessary clearance for publication of this book is yet to be received from the relevant authorities.
"Upon verification, it was found that a PDF copy of a type-set book with the same title and apparently prepared by M/s Penguin Random House India Pvt Ltd is available on certain websites and, also, some online marketing platforms have displayed the finished book cover as if it is available for purchase," it read.
The police said a case has been registered with the Special Cell in order to carry out a thorough investigation into this purported leak or breach of a yet-to-be-approved publication and an investigation is being taken up.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was seen flashing a purported copy of the book in the Parliament complex last week. The matter has generated immense heat with the proceedings of the Lok Sabha getting disrupted and eight MPs getting suspended over the issue for the remaining part of the ongoing Budget session.
“They did not let me speak three or four times. First, they said I cannot quote a book. Then I said I am not quoting a book, I am quoting a magazine. Then they said you cannot quote a magazine,” Rahul said.
He further accused Defence Minister Rajnath Singh of making a “false claim” that the book was unpublished. “The book has been published and we have got a copy of it,” Gandhi said, adding that it was available abroad but not permitted to be published in India.
