Elon Musk with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC (file photo)
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NATHAN HOWARD

Everyone is getting excited about the Donald Trump and Elon Musk quarrel as if it is the first time such a thing is happening. But as some great man once said there is nothing new under the sun.

The sorry tale of friends falling out is so distressingly long that it’s hard to know where to start. You can find the same story in different parts of the world, from China to Chile, Denmark to South Africa.

We all know about the British quarrels, of course, because we were taught British history for a hundred years. We even know about that scoundrel of a king, Henry II who fought with his good friend and adviser, the Archbishop of Canterbury. That was 1400 years ago!

Their quarrel lasted for nearly a decade, from 1161 to 1170 and ended with the latter being murdered. Typically, the British historians now say that maybe it wasn’t because Henry ordered it but because his lieutenants decided to be helpful. If you believe that you will believe anything.

Napoleon Bonaparte, who was from the French army, also parted ways with two of his closest friends and advisers. Both were generals, just like he had been before he grabbed power in 1799. The best known one who was discarded is Jean Junot. But General Jean Lannes is probably a better example.

We must not forget Kaiser Wilhelm I of 19th century Germany and his grise eminence, Otto Von Bismarck. Together they united Germany, just as Sardar Patel united India. And then the Kaiser booted out Bismarck. The episode came to be known as ‘dropping the pilot’. After that the Kaiser lost the plot as well.

Killing friends

Tsarist Russia, of course, is full of such examples. The worst of these was a fellow called Leo Vorensky who was Catherine the Great’s lover for many years. Catherine let him be killed saying it was all for all for Mother Russia! There were a few more who met the same or similar fates.

Nor has the world forgotten the horrific quarrel between Joseph Stalin and Leon Trotsky. Both had fought together against the Tsar.

Then they fell out and Stalin exiled Trotsky in 1926. Stalin then had him hacked to death in 1940 in Mexico, just to be sure. Trotsky, however, lives on in JNU. Then there is the notorious fight between Adolf Hitler and Ernst Roehm. They were close friends and partners from 1918 onwards, until in 1934 Hitler had him killed or, according to another version, leaving nothing to chance, killed him himself.

If you want a job done properly, he must have thought, you must do it yourself.

You will find a somewhat similar story in Pakistan between Prime Minister Iskandar Mirza and his defence minister, General Ayub Khan. They were good friends.

Mirza was the patron, Ayub Khan the beneficiary. Until one fine day Khan forcibly sent Mirza into exile, with just a suitcase. When the latter died 11 years later he wasn’t allowed to be buried in Pakistan.

General Musharraf and prime minister Nawaz Sharif re-enacted that episode in 1999. Sharif sacked Musharraf and Musharraf then sacked Sharif. Jolly fellows, both. Today Shahbaz, younger brother of Nawaz, is the prime minister and is very careful not to annoy Field Marshal Asim Munir, the only general in history to be promoted after a defeat.

Indian stories

India also has its share of such dramatic ruptures. Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose; Nehru and Abul Kalam Azad; Indira Gandhi and Dinesh Singh; Rajiv Gandhi and the two Aruns, Singh and Nehru. Also there was VP Singh who wasn’t quite such a close friend of Rajiv but certainly a close associate. He destroyed Rajiv’s reputation in the Bofors scandal.

Such cases abound at the State level also. M Karunanidhi and MG Ramachandran in Tamil Nadu and the Thackerays in Maharashtra are the most prominent examples. Not all that long ago, Arvind Kejriwal was dumping all those who had helped him become Chief Minister of Delhi.

The list of these quarrels and perfidies is depressingly long going back to Julius Caesar who was murdered by his closest friends. As to the Muslim rulers of India, the less said the better.

But two things are worth noting. One, the friendships that last through the inevitable ups and downs are far greater in number than those that don’t. There are several Atal Behari Vajpayees and Lal Krishna Advanis.

Secondly, generally the friends that take the lower profile don’t do very badly in life and gradually their reputations are restored and refurbished. Not always but often enough.

Published on June 9, 2025

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