No 20-Year Cooling-Off Period For Retiring Military Officials: Rajnath Singh After Naravane Book Row

Last Updated:February 22, 2026, 21:50 IST

The Delhi Police has registered an FIR over the circulation of an unpublished book of former Chief of Army Staff Gen M M Naravane on social media.

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday clarified that there is no proposal for a mandatory 20-year cooling-off period for retired army officers writing books. Speaking to reporters, the minister said that no such proposal came up for discussion before the Cabinet. Therefore, there will be no restriction or ban on former Army officials or retiring officials on writing books soon after their retirement.

This controversy sparked over a book — “Four Stars of Destiny" — written by former Army chief General MM Naravane. This book caused a nationwide stir after the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, tried to read excerpts from it in the parliament.

The book is on the Ladakh standoff with China.

The stunt witnessed massive uproar and it was alleged that the book contained sensitive information regarding national security. The book was set to be released in 2024, but its release was halted as the review by the Defence Ministry was pending.

Defence Minister further reiterated that rules already exist that retired officers should not disclose classified or secret information. “Government permission is required to publish any sensitive information. So, the government’s position is that there is no need for a new 20-year rule; the current laws are sufficient," he said.

As per the current regulations, military officials are restricted from revealing classified information related to national security even after their retirement. Such disclosure is subject to regulations under the Official Secrets Act.

Controversy Around Naravane’s Unpublished Book

As per the police, the book was leaked on some social media sites and a case has been registered with the Special Cell in order to carry out a thorough investigation into this purported leak or breach.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was seen flashing a purported copy of the book in the Parliament on February 3. After massive uproar, eight MPs were suspended over the issue.

“Upon verification, it was found that a PDF copy of a type-set book with the same title and apparently prepared by M/s Penguin Random House India Pvt Ltd is available on certain websites and, also, some online marketing platforms have displayed the finished book cover as if it is available for purchase," Delhi police said in its official statement.

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