(Image source from: Why Manmohan Singh allowed Sonia Gandhi to treat him as a doormat?})

As elections in India kick off, skeletons are slowly tumbling out of the closet every day, firing fresh controversies and leading to extensive debates. The latest addition to this list is Sanjay Baru - Dr. Manmohan Singh's media advisor during UPA I - new book titled, "The Accidental Prime Minister: The making and unmaking of Manmohan Singh", that reveals the "real thing" between Sonia Gandhi and Dr. Manmohan Singh.

The book that made a low-key entry into the book stores yesterday offers fresh dope on the division of powers between the Prime Minister and Congress President and underlines one big truth - the PM was always aware that there was only one power centre – the Congress President.

The book reveals how Manmohan Singh allowed himself to be undermined by Mrs. Sonia Gandhi. He knew that having two authoritative powers — one in party and another in government — would be catastrophic. That is why Manmohan Singh never asserted himself and that is exactly what the book conveys by and large.

The book also accuses key officials like T.K.A.Nair, Principal Secretary to the PM in UPA 1 as well as for some years in UPA II, for creating the perception of the Prime Minister as totally ineffectual. It reveals that throughout UPA 1 term, the PM's functioning was constantly impeded by other senior cabinet peers like A.K.Antony and Arjun Singh. Surprisingly, the one person who always came to Manmohan Singh's defense was NCP leader Sharad Pawar.

The book also tells about the conflict in the Congress party and Manmohan Singh over the Lok Sabha 2009 win. Although the credit for the win should have gone to Manmohan Singh for steering the economy out of trouble from 2008 recessions, key members of the inner coterie of Sonia Gandhi weren't too happy about Manmohan Singh walking away with the laurels. Therefore, they claimed the electoral victory of 2009 was due to the party's campaign and communication strategy and not much else.

In the book, Sanjaya Baru also mentions how on occasions, Dr. Singh would tell him to allow the party to take adulation for big policy decision like the welfare agenda of the UPA. Indeed, those close to Manmohan Singh could very well see how the party took credit for all the wins but blamed Manmohan squarely for all the botch ups.

Manmohan's image, however, took a real beating towards the later years of UPA II, when the party openly started defying the PMO for policy paralysis.

Baru's book will definitely be seized upon by various political forces, even if it doesn't intend to do so.

AW: Suchorita Chowdary