Rasheed Kidwai

Journalist | Author | Political analyst

About: Formerly Associate Editor of The Telegraph, Kidwai is a regular political commentator on various television networks and radio programmes. He is a political analyst and tracks the trajectories of political parties in India. Interested in narrative non-fiction, Kidwai researches Indian history for its complexities and intrigues of human nature.

BOOK

Name: The House of Scindias: A Saga of Power, Politics and Intrigue

Description:

Jostling to spill over, along with priceless jewels in the treasury of Jai Vilas Palace — the Scindias’ royal abode in Gwalior — are many carefully buried secrets. Some are best hidden away, such as the Gwalior monarchs’ controversial role during the Revolt of 1857. Others need to be kept out of sight for diplomatic causes, such as the Rajmata’s excessive dependency on her ‘Rasputin’ and the resultant mistrust of her only son, Madhavrao.

One of the bigger questions is the palace’s alleged and under-probed role in Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination. It is perhaps because of these unsolved mysteries that curiosity about the Scindias — a family that has given India many a statespersons across party lines — continues to dominate India’s public imagination. With political intrigue, palace conspiracies, cut-throat rivalry and an ugly public feud, betrayals and property wars fought in courts, and siblings that do not look eye to eye, the Scindias make tantalizing headlines.

With a wealth of information about the Gwalior royals, The House of Scindias is their most definitive and revealing biography.