In the Library Request this item to view in the Library's reading rooms using your library card. Details Collect From Order a copy Copyright or permission restrictions may apply. We will contact you if necessary. To learn more about Copies Direct watch this short online video.
Need Help? How do I find a book? Can I borrow this item? Can I get a copy? Can I view this online? Ask a librarian. Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and other First Nations people are advised that this catalogue contains names, recordings and images of deceased people and other content that may be culturally sensitive.
Your rating has been recorded. Write a review Rate this item: 1 2 3 4 5. Preview this item Preview this item. Subjects Mathai, M. Show all links. Allow this favorite library to be seen by others Keep this favorite library private. Save Cancel. Find a copy in the library Finding libraries that hold this item Reviews User-contributed reviews Add a review and share your thoughts with other readers.
Be the first. Add a review and share your thoughts with other readers. Tags Add tags for "My days with Nehru". India -- Politics and government -- India -- Officials and employees -- Biography.
Politics and government India. User lists with this item 2 Political 4 items by ManojMajnoon updated All rights reserved. Please sign in to WorldCat Don't have an account? Remember me on this computer. Cancel Forgot your password? M O Mathai. Most significantly, he was already a man of means when he joined Pt. Nehru in , and did not need regular income to support himself. He served Mr. Nehru during one of the most momentous periods in the Indian History, and long before Mr. Nehru was part of the Government.
In fact, Mr. Mathai joined his staff on Government payroll only reluctantly. His resignation in was tendered in the aftermath of communist propaganda. Mathai did not want to make public any of his personal matters. Nehru knew him well, trusted him implicitly, and was aware of no wrongdoing on Mr.
Mathai's part. He, however, did include them in his letter to Mr. Naturally, in his year association with Mr. Nehru, Mr. Mathai had a unique opportunity to see many significant events unfold. No one else knew Nehru as well or as closely as he did. It is fair to say that Mr. Mathai's reminiscences had to do little or nothing with "grinding an axe" against anyone.
One exception is the missing Chapter 29, titled "She," allegedly dealing with his year affair with Indira Gandhi. Since the book was published soon after the "Emergency" imposed by Mrs. Gandhi, it is likely, and understandably so, why this chapter which even though is included in the Table of Contents was withdrawn before the book went to the printing press.
A page with chapter title She is included, with the publisher's note that says: "This chapter on an intensely personal experience of the author's, written without inhibition in the D. Lawrence style, has been withdrawn by the author at the last minute.
This book gives a snap shot of major happenings in the history of India from through Mathai's account of major events is very informative. The reader is invaluably benefited by an understanding of the events and actors of a crucial time in Indian history and the country's emergence as a republic. His insights, impressions and reminiscences of the noted key figures of the times are interesting for a generation like mine that grew only hearing those names.
Even when he jumps between various characters one does not lose the thread. Whenever pertinent, he links an ongoing discussion with an earlier chapter to sort of jog the reader's memory. Mathai's writing is crisp. His style of narration is a combination of being matter-of-factly and funny at the same time. He minces no words. In his recollections, he is both poignant and witty.
Mathai's affection and admiration for Mr. Nehru, and his loyalty comes through and through. Mathai comes across sincere and perhaps that is another factor by that lends credibility to his book.
It is a must-read book for all "inquiring minds. Now begins my feverish search for the other banned Mathai book: "My Days with Nehru. Mathai This book is more than Nehru's private life. View all 10 comments. Feb 12, RK Kuppala rated it it was amazing. No wonder Indian govt banned this book. Now I must find the other out of print, banned book written by Mr.
Why should you read him? 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. View all 6 comments. May 25, Yogesh Saxena rated it it was amazing. No one tells us that Now, who is this Feroze? We are told by many he was the son of the family grocer. The grocer supplied wines etc. Moti Lal was earlier an employee of Mobarak Ali. But then we all know that everyone has two grandfathers, the paternal and the material grandfather.
In fact, the paternal grandfather is deemed to be the more important grandfather in most societies. This Muslim grocer by the name of Nawab Khan, had married a Parsi woman after converting her to Islam. This is the source where from the myth of Rajiv being a Parsi was derived. The fact of the matter is that and this fact can be found in many writings Indira was very lonely.
Chased out of the Shantiniketan University by Guru Dev Rabindranath himself for misdemeanor, the lonely girl was an by herself while father Jawahar was busy with polities pretty women and illicit sex; the mother was in hospital. Nehru was not happy; Kamala was dead already or dying. The news of this married eventually reached Mohandas Karan Chand Gandhi.
Gandhi urgently called Nehru and practically ordered him to ask the young man to change his name from Khan to Gandhi. It had nothing to do with change of religion, from Islam to Hindustan for instance. It was just a case of a change of name by an affidavit. And so Feroze Khan became Feroze Gandhi. On the subject, writes M. An inter-religious and inter-caste marriage Vedic rites at that time was not valid in law.
To be legal, it had to be a civil marriage. Mathai writes that the death of Feroze came as a relief to Nehru and Indira. The death of Feroze in before he could consolidate his own political force, is itself a mystery. Feroze had even planned to remarry. Those who try to keep tabs on our lenders in spite of all the suppressions and deliberate misinformation are aware of the fact that the second son Indira or Mrs.
Feroze Khan known as Sanjay Gandhi was not the son of Feroze. He was the son of another Moslem gentleman, Mohammad Yunus. Here in passing, we might that the second son was originally named Sanjeev.
It was claimed to Sanjeev when he was arrested by the British police in England and his passport impounded, for having stolen a car. He offered to issue another passport to the felon who changed his name to Sanjay.
And the marriage with Manaka who was a model She had modeled for Bombay Dyeing wearing just a towel was not so ordinary either. Sanjay was notorious in getting unwed young women pregnant. Menaka too was rendered pregnant by Sanjay. It was then that her father. Colonel Anand threatened Sanjay with dire consequences if he did not marry her daughter.
And that did the trick. Sanjay married Menaka. It was widely reported in Delhi at the time that Mohammad Yunus was unhappy at the marriage of Sanjay with Menaka; apparently he had wanted to get him married with a Muslim girl of his choice.
It was Mohammad Yunus who carried the most when Sanjay died in the plane accident. It was always believed that Sanjay used to blackmail Indira Gandhi and due to this she used to turn a blind eye when Sanjay Gandhi started to run the country as though if were his personal fiefdom. Was he black mailing her with the secret of who his real father was? Nehru was no less a player in producing bastards. At least one case is very graphically described by M.
She was a Sanskrit Scholar well versed in the ancient Indian scriptures and mythology. People including MPs, thronged to her to hear her discourses. Suddenly Shraddha Mata disappeared. In November a convent in Bangalore sent a decent looking person to Delhi with a bundle of letters. He said One day S. As her departed, I noticed Mathai is speaking here that she was young, shapely and beautiful.
Meetings with her became rather frequent , mostly after Nehru finished his work at night. Nehru sent her the reply, and she visited Nehru at midnight….
She refused to divulge her name or give any particulars about herself. She left the convent as soon as she was well enough to move out but left the child behind. She however forgot to take with her a small cloth bundle in which, among other things, several letters in Hindi were found. The Mother superior, who was a foreigner , had the letters examined and was told they were from the Prime Minister.
The person, who brought the letters surrendered them,. Convents in such matters are extremely tightlipped and secretive. Had I succeeded in locating the boy. I would have adopted him. He must have grown up as a Catholic Christian blissfully ignorant of who his father was. Rajiv become Roberto. Quite cleverly the same names are presented to the people of India as Priyanka and Rahul.
The press conference that Rajiv Gandhi gave in London after taking over as prime minister of India was very informative. It is the western press that waged a blitz of misinformation on behalf of Rajiv. No doubt US kids are among the most misinformed in the world today. The reality is that in all three years of his tenure at that University Rajiv had not passed a single examination.
He had therefore to leave Cambridge without a certificate. Sonia too had the same benevolent treatment. She was stated to be student in Cambridge. Such a description is calculated to mis lead Indian. She was a student in Cambridge all right but not of the University of Cambridge but of one of those fly by night language schools where foreign student come to leave English.
This is the Nehru dynasty that India worships and now an Italian leads a prestigious national party because of just one qualification — being married into the Nehru family.
Maneka Gandhi itself is being accepted by the non-Congress parties not because she was a former model or an animal lover, but for her links to the Nehru family.
Saying that an Italian should not lead India will amount to narrow mindedness. Nov 16, Sugan rated it really liked it. I got attracted to this book only because I learned it was banned in India. After reading this book now I have different opinion on Political leaders of India. Mathai explains his views on Nehru and the other political leaders of that time in this book. It is interesting to know the personal life of leaders whom we learn in books in schools.
Jun 22, Ishani rated it really liked it Shelves: read-in , history , non-fiction , india , indian-author , politics. When it comes to Nehru-Gandhi age, there had always been more than two sides to the same story with no living proof to vouch for anything, making it difficult to assess opinions as biased or unbiased, true or false.
The mere fact that this book is still banned in India kind of is my only conviction that the book does contain facts that otherwise are not supposed to be known to public. Having said this, the main reason for which I wanted to read this book was to get to know the dirts of that age e When it comes to Nehru-Gandhi age, there had always been more than two sides to the same story with no living proof to vouch for anything, making it difficult to assess opinions as biased or unbiased, true or false.
Having said this, the main reason for which I wanted to read this book was to get to know the dirts of that age especially on Nehru. But if anything the book does is to highlight everything good that were in Nehru. Elsewhere in his entire book, Mathai had been very critical of everyone in general and more to anyone who was openly anti Nehru or had different opinion that Nehru.
Almost everyone in that category had more or less been depicted like a fool. To some extent understandable, because Mathai of course might have liked or agreed to Nehru on outlook as he had himself approached Nehru to serve him as his assistant that too without payment.
0コメント