Reminiscences of the Nehru Age - M.O. Mathai

Having heard quite often that in this book 'Reminiscences of the Nehru Age - M.O. Mathai' says about Nehru having a Muslim lineage and claims of fraternal blood relations between Nehru and Muhammad Ali Jinnah; was curious to read this. These are rumors or exploitation by the Nationalist right to spread fake news. Though there is a chapter on Indira Gandhi, there is nothing on their relationship - it was of hate from first. A chapter called 'She' is kept as blank and withdrawn, with note from Publisher stating that it was on an intensely personal experience written in D.H. Lawrence style - though available online - what is in there does not appear to be in M.O. Mathai's writing style. Moreover - when there is separate chapter on Indira - why only this deleted chapter with the title 'She'?

10th of 2020 with 295 pages Reminiscences of the Nehru Age is a book written by M.O. Mathai about his experiences while working as the private secretary to India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. There are 49 chapters, some on Nehru's work and personal life and some on the people that Mathai met while working with Nehru. It is an engaging read in which Mathai effortlessly takes the reader back in time and narrates his encounters & experiences with different leaders in a very blunt & unforgiving style giving a snap shot of Indian political history from 1946 to 1959. This work is a major contribution to modern Indian history as it gives and insider's view of how the powerful often tried to manipulate Nehru for purposes that were not always conductive to nation-building.

"Before I started writing this book, I suspended from my mind all personal loyalties of a conventional nature: Only my obligation to history remained.

I have made no full-scale assessments of the historic persons with whom I came into close contact. It is for distinguished historians of the future to undertake that task."

M.O. Mathai, was reputed to be the most powerful man after the Prime Minister during the years that he served Nehru, and got to know everything about Nehru, most especially the first Prime Minister's private thoughts about Politics, Congress leaders, Bureaucrats, Money, Women, Sex, Alchohol along with much else that attracted his attention off and on. The author reveals all with much candor and sincerity. Mathai writes about Nehru's style, Krishna Menon's personal habits, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit's extravagance, Gandhiji's baffling ways, interesting talk with George Bernard Shawn, Feroze Gandhi's ambitions, comparison of Nehru with Churchill and Mountbatten's weakness for titles and honors with errors in the book Freedom at Midnight (A separate post on this in comparison with other books as well). National Herald story is factual description which is informative. G D Birla, Sarojini Naidu, Padmaja Naidu are ideal perons who have helped in freedom struggle and have been praised. Book highlights everything good that were in Nehru, even while criticizing Nehru’s stand on Kashmir, Pakistan & China, he did it very mildly so as to not tarnish Nehru in anyway.

Coming to Indira, this could have been the only reason for which this book was banned in India. Mathai’s prediction about Congress has come true finally. A day before the election to succeed Lal Bahadur, when a minister asked Mathai of his view, he said; she would be elected because Nehru's image loomed large in the background. She will ruin the country; and on the day after Emergency was declared on 25 June 1975; he said - this is only the beginning; she is on the high road to runining her party and herself beyond repair. What I am worried about is what forces will emerge in place of the Congress.