Quixplained: why has ISRO chief Somanath withdrawn publishing of his autobiography

ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Saturday said he was withdrawing from the publishing of his upcoming autobiography, after a controversy erupted over some of his alleged critical remarks about his predecessor K Sivan in the book.

Somanath confirmed that he had decided to withdraw the publication of the book 'Nilavu Kudicha Simhangal' (loosely translated as - Lions that drank the moonlight), in the light of the controversy.

Earlier in the day, talking to PTI, he said every person would have to go through some kind of challenges during their journey to reach a top position in an organisation.

Somanath was responding to a report that claimed his autobiography had some critical remarks about his predecessor Sivan.

"Persons holding such key positions may have to go through several challenges. One among them is the challenges with regard to getting positions in an organisation," he said, adding that these are challenges that everybody has to go through.

"More persons might be eligible for a significant post. I just tried to bring out that particular point. I didn't target any particular individual in this regard," he explained.

He admitted that he mentioned in his book the lack of clarity in connection with the announcement of the failure of the Chandrayaan-2 mission.

The ISRO Chairman reiterated that his autobiography was an attempt to inspire people who wish to achieve by fighting challenges and obstacles in life and not criticise anyone.