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Top leaders of Iran were assassinated in 1951 and 75 years later in 2026 several key functionaries occupying high positions in that country including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and security chief Ali Larijani were decapitated by brutal military assaults of US and Israel in blatant violation of the UN Charter.

Reasons behind assassinations

Then in 1951 Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was sensitive enough to take note of those tragic killings in Iran and on March 21 that year, in a letter to chief ministers, he wrote, “In Iran recently, there has been the assassination of the Prime Minister General Ali Razmara and later, another Minister Abdul Hamid Zangoneh.”

“Behind these bloody deeds,” he with anguish remarked, “There lies apparently the story of oil, ever an unsavoury business.” He then proceeded to observe, “Iran is in a troubled and unstable state and Great Powers look upon her great oil resources with greed. A party in Iran and indeed the Majlis (parliament) also have declared for nationalisation of oil.”

Nehru’s sharp observations that the bloody violence snatching away lives of top leaders of Iran could be attributed to the incessant greed for its oil resources by great powers got echoed in the statement of US President Donald Trump who in an interview with Financial Times on March 29, 2026 bluntly stated, “To be honest with you, my favourite thing is to take the oil in Iran” and suggested that “the United States could seize Kharg Island, the country’s main oil export hub.”

 Therefore, Nehru’s utterances of 1951 that “Behind these bloody deeds, there lies apparently the story of oil, ever an unsavoury business” resonates in 2026 when US and Israel launched vicious attack on Iran and violated its sovereignty.

It is rather gratifying to note that Iran is facing that assault by displaying extraordinary resilience amply manifested in its asymmetrical war against US by successfully using missiles and drones and sustaining its escalating dominance.

Iran is winning the war in spite of the heavy losses it has suffered on account of the dastardly attack on it by US and Israel. US treasury secretary Scott Bessent told on March 22 that US troops might be deployed to capture Iran’s Kharg island, a critical hub for Iran’s oil production, and convert it to an US asset.

It has been widely apprehended that in case US launched ground level military operation by deploying its soldiers then it would face the debacle exactly the way in which it suffered losses in the Vietnam war.

Suez crisis and issue of Strait of Hormuz

Following the illegal and brutal aggression on Iran by US and Israel, the ships carrying oil and gas to rest of the world through Strait of Hormuz has been blocked by Iran except in case of those oil tankers not belonging to the side of the aggressors. It is well known that 20% of oil and 20% of liquified natural gas pass through Hormuz and its closure has resulted in a global economic crisis. The worst victim of it has been India. 

It is in this context that the India’s first Prime Minister Nehru’s sane advice and prudent stand on the Suez Canal issue in 1951 assumes critical significance. That advice was offered by him even before the Suez crisis emerged as a global flashpoint in 1956 following the nationalisation of that crucial Canal by Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser and consequent invasion of Egypt by a secret alliance of Britain, France, and Israel.

On November 3, 1951 while answering questions concerning decision of British authorities to introduce troops in the Suez zone Nehru cautioned that such use of armed forces constituted efforts for war and expressed doubt if any number of troops would ever provide solution to the problem. Dealing with another question if there would be an international authority to control traffic on water ways passing through several countries he said there was no reason why the Suez Canal should not be completely under Egyptian political sovereignty with international arrangements to manage passage of other countries without interfering in its national authority.

It is salutary to note that Nehru rendered that sound advice taking into account the shifts in balance of power in various parts of the world following the end of second world war and the decolonisation process resulting in India’s independence from the centuries old British rule, paving the way for end of colonialism in Asia.

That sound advice of Nehru is of immense significance in 2026 the context of Strait of Hormuz particularly when there are reports that the US under the leadership of its President is mobilising ground troops for their possible deployment to set the strait free from Iranian control.

It is tragic that the ongoing war against Iran by US and Israel commencing on February 28, 2026 has been preceded by American secretary of state Marc Rubio’s defence of colonialism, the end of which he sadly attributed to anti-colonial struggles. So the spiralling aggression against Iran and the possibility of deployment of troops to capture Kharg island of that country rich with oil and gas and forcefully open Strait of Hormuz would spell calamity for the world which is caught in the whirlpool of economic crisis following the closure of Hormuz.

Nehru’s role during Suez Crisis

In 1956, Nehru played a stellar role to resolve the Suez Crisis, condemning aggression by Britain, France and Israel on Egypt and described their military action as a manifestation of colonial rule. His leadership in handling the crisis resulted in securing a peaceful resolution and safeguarding Egyptian sovereignty.

In contrast Prime Minister Narendra Modi, by standing in solidarity with the US and Israel, has demolished the core values of our foreign policy.

In his letter to chief ministers on October 1, 1959, Nehru gave an account of his visit to Iran that year and observed, “I sensed how the people of Iran look towards India in rather a special way. We are not just any country, strong or weak, but a country with a special message in international affairs, which has been progressively appreciated in the rest of the world. Some Governments may not like us, but I think that the people in every country appreciate us and sometimes even look up to us. We do not speak the language of force or of cold war, and it is a pleasant change for them to notice this difference.”

Modi’s actions with regards to the crisis confronted by Iran is inconsistent with that invaluable legacy which needs to be salvaged to restore India’s credibility at the global level.

S.N. Sahu served as officer on Special Duty to President of India K.R. Narayana. 

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