Mr Obama detailed the meetings he had
An Indian lawyer from Uttar Pradesh has filed a petition before a court seeking a formal complaint against Barack Obama for “insulting” the country’s leaders in his book A Promised Land.
Gyan Prakash Shukla filed the civil suit on November 19, 2020.
He demanded that the police file an FIR against the former US President for allegedly insulting and humiliating Congress Party politicians Rahul Gandhi and Manmohan Singh.
The case has now been granted a hearing and is scheduled for December 1, 2020, in Lalganj Civil Court.
The memoir by Mr Obama has made headlines in India and attracted attention in the political world for its unfavourable description of Mr Gandhi.
Mr Obama detailed the meetings he had with Indian political leaders during his first term in office when the Congress Party was in power.
Mr Shukla was against the passages that said Sonia Gandhi chose Manmohan Singh to be India’s 13th Prime Minister as he posed no threat to her son Rahul Gandhi, who is described as “nervous” and “eager to impress” in the book.
Mr Obama wrote: “Rahul Gandhi has a nervous, unformed quality about him as if he were a student who’d done the coursework and was eager to impress the teacher but deep down lacked either the aptitude or the passion to master the subject.”
However, he did say Mr Gandhi “seemed smart and earnest”.
On Mr Singh, Mr Obama stated that he came across as “wise, thoughtful and scrupulously honest”, and as a “self-effacing technocrat who’d won the people’s trust not by appealing to their passions but bringing about higher living standards and maintaining a well-earned reputation for not being corrupt”.
The former President wrote that Ms Gandhi was a “striking woman” who spent more time listening than speaking.
He suggested her power came from “a shrewd and forceful intelligence”.
The memoir was discussed by the media and in most cases, the comments were described as praise as Mr Obama praised Mr Singh’s resistance to rising nationalist sentiments in India.
However, the comments about Mr Gandhi have been criticised by Congress politicians. It has also given BJP politicians an opportunity to mock the opposition.
In his petition, the Indian lawyer has called for India to issue a formal complaint to Mr Obama, that the millions of followers of these politicians will be hurt by his comments and tensions could arise if citizens take to the streets to protest against the book.
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