Published on: 11/11/2015IST
I was PAID to write a book on Indian PM Modi. I had never heard of him before
Francis Elliott
A former spin doctor for Tony Blair has admitted that he was paid an undisclosed sum to write a biography of Narendra Modi, the Indian prime minister.
Lance Price, a former BBC journalist who worked for Mr Blair during his first term, publicised The Modi Effect saying that of “all the elections I have ever reported or taken part in, nothing compares to Narendra Modi’s”.
In fact, Price has admitted, he had never heard of Mr Modi, who was elected in May last year, until he was approached by one of the Indian prime minister’s associates
Lance Price, the British author of a book on Narendra Modi, said on Tuesday he had interviewed the Prime Minister during four visits to India and refuted reports in the British media that he had not heard of Modi until he was approached to write the book.
The book, The Modi Effect, was released earlier this year. Price told Hindustan Times that he was working on an updated paperback version of the book to be released next year.
According to a report in The Times, Price had “never heard” of Modi until he was approached by one of the Prime Minister’s associates to write the book after the May 2014 election. The report further said Price had “received financial support”.
However, Price said: “I have no idea where The Times got the idea from that I had never heard of Modi.”
“I am a journalist and a current affairs junkie, so of course I followed the election in India and knew as much about him as any reasonably well-informed outsider.”
He added, “But I certainly had an appetite to know more and I thought many people outside India would be interested to learn about his campaign and his plans for the country. I was first approached in June 2014, so not long after his election victory.”
Price made four research trips to India and interviewed Modi and others involved in the BJP campaign on each occasion.
He said he was looking forward to Modi’s visit to London later this week but had no plans to meet him.
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