Who is the author of the book “The Accidental Prime Minister”?

The correct answer is D) Sanjaya Baru. The Accidental Prime Minister: The Making and Unmaking of Manmohan Singh was published in 2014. Baru had served as media adviser to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from 2004 to 2008, and the book draws on that proximity to describe the PMO and the UPA years. A 2019 film of the same name was based on it.

• A) Rajdeep Sardesai is wrong. He is a television journalist and wrote on the 2014 general election, not this book.
• B) Karan Thapar is wrong. He is a broadcaster and interviewer known for his long-form interviews, not the author of this book.
• C) Kuldeep Nayar is wrong. He was a veteran journalist and columnist known for works such as Between the Lines, but he did not write this book.

Core concept: the book is a political memoir-style account of the Prime Minister's Office and coalition governance. For Mains, it links to coalition politics, the relationship between the PMO and the party, and the role of the Prime Minister's office in policy-making.

Trap: aspirants often pick the most famous journalist in the list. Match the author to the specific title, not to general reputation.