Protesters Burn Sonia Gandhi Memoir Over 1984 Riot Account

Families of victims from the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and members of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee burned copies of the memoir Belonging: A Journey of Love at the Rakab Ganj Gurdwara in New Delhi on Thursday.

Sonia Gandhi released the memoir on Tuesday, in which she describes the 1984 violence as a "tragic and shameful" chapter of history. She wrote that more than 2,000 people died in the capital and characterized the events as a period where governance failed, allowing for barbarism. Gandhi defended her husband, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, stating that he held no bigotry despite the failure of governance during the riots.

The protests were a direct response to these characterizations of the violence and the defense of Rajiv Gandhi's role during the crisis.