The investigation team from Britain, America, and the Soviet Union was attacked in New Delhi. The head of the British delegation was killed, while the American and Soviet members were captured. Instead of rescuing them, the Indian military went to the extreme of bombing the hotel in an attempt to cover up the scandal.
This incident quickly became headline news across Western countries.
Originally, if things had gone according to Nehru's plan, with all investigation members dead, he could have blamed the attackers and sacrificed a few low-level soldiers as scapegoats to appease the three nations.
The appearance of Apocalypse Tanks also gave him a reason to shift the blame onto the Soviet Union.
Even though India would still face international criticism, the country itself wouldn't suffer too much damage.
However, for this plan to work, Josh and Voyant, two key figures, couldn't leave New Delhi alive.
But things didn't go as planned.
Just as Nehru sent out his fabricated reports to the three governments, Josh and Voyant, through their intelligence channels, informed the White House and the Kremlin that they were safe and revealed the truth of the attack.
Both countries immediately shared this information with Downing Street.
With that, Nehru's once-decent image among the three nations' leaders was completely ruined.
In the media, India was portrayed as the new face of evil.
People in all three nations demanded severe punishment for India.
The British reaction was especially strong. Churchill, though no longer Prime Minister, rushed to the U.S. as soon as he heard the news.
Although he had been removed from office near the end of the war, he remained active in politics as leader of the Conservative Party and as a member of Parliament.
Churchill had always opposed India's independence.
Ironically, during World War II, he was the first to promise post-war independence for India.
Of course, his agreement was purely a strategic move to keep India loyal to Britain during the war.
Otherwise, with Britain already struggling in Asia, an Indian rebellion would have made things even worse.
As the war neared its end, Churchill completely changed his stance. Instead of supporting independence, he took a firm position, ready to use force if necessary.
However, he didn't expect to be removed from power before he could act.
When the Labour Party took over, they turned his temporary promise into reality.
This frustrated Churchill greatly.
And he wasn't the only one—many British citizens were also unhappy.
Despite Britain's struggles in World War II and the economic difficulties that followed, the country had only recently lost its position as the world's leading power. The British people still held onto their national pride.
Over the years, Britain had lost many of its colonies, and the government's failures in suppressing revolts further weakened its authority. The Wakanda War was won, but at a huge cost. Meanwhile, the loss of colonial resources had plunged the economy into crisis, causing Prime Minister Attlee's popularity to plummet.
But in the end, Attlee was the Prime Minister, not Churchill.
The Labour Party controlled the government, not the Conservatives.
So, no matter how much Churchill opposed it, India's independence had already become a fact.
However, this crisis in India made him see a new opportunity—an opportunity for Britain to return.
Of course, Churchill knew that things had changed. Britain could no longer dominate India as it once did.
Given the shifting global power balance, it was clear that the leading superpowers were now the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
Without their approval, Britain couldn't achieve much.
If Britain wanted to return to India, the opinions of these two giants were crucial.
Of course, for Britain, the most important factor was America's stance.
When Churchill arrived at the White House, Truman was already furious over the India incident.
The previous UN investigation had already been an embarrassment for the U.S., but India's military bombing a hotel made things even worse.
In this situation, it didn't matter that Josh was a powerful billionaire in American high society and the actual head of the CIA.
Even if he had been just an ordinary official, the U.S. would still have to act.
Otherwise, how could it maintain its position as a global superpower without becoming a laughingstock?
Despite Truman's calm and mild-mannered public image, he was ruthless at heart.
Once he understood Churchill's intentions, they quickly came to an agreement and drafted an initial plan.
At that moment, the Soviet leader also called the White House.
After hours of discussion, the three sides finalized the plan—though they all chose to ignore the mysterious "Soviet" super tank that had appeared during the New Delhi incident.
Of course, immediate action was taken only by the U.S. and the Soviets, since Churchill, not being Prime Minister, couldn't make decisions on behalf of Britain.
But when he returned with the plan, the Attlee government had little choice.
Refusing would not only mean missing out on potential benefits but also offending both the U.S. and the Soviets.
Attlee wasn't foolish enough to reject it.
As a result, the British Pacific Fleet and the U.S. Pacific Fleet, which had been operating in Southeast Asia, set sail for the Indian Ocean.
The Soviets were even more direct—massive mechanized units gathered in Kyrgyzstan, then moved through Afghanistan and Pakistan, advancing toward northern India through Kashmir.
Even with India's poor intelligence capabilities, an operation of this magnitude couldn't have gone unnoticed.
But by that time, Nehru had already lost control.
Soon after international pressure mounted, he was stripped of power and placed under house arrest.
Although he had been the most powerful figure in India, he did not rule the country alone.
Another man held almost equal authority
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