Iran’s Supreme Leader Khomeini’s '… Connection': His Grandfather Added Hindi to His Name, Family Still Lives There

The tension between Israel and Iran is at its peak. Both countries are firing missiles at each other. The sounds of war have intensified, and in such a situation, a historical and interesting link seems to be connecting with Barabanki in Uttar Pradesh. Very few people know that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khomeini has ancestral ties with Kintur village in Barabanki.

Actually, Ayatollah Ali Khomeini's grandfather Syed Ahmed Musavi was born in Kintur village near Barabanki in the early nineteenth century. He later said goodbye to India and turned toward Iran. During his journey, he went to Najaf in Iraq and finally settled in the city of Khomein in Iran around 1834. From there, his family's story entered the politics and revolution of Iran.

According to media reports, Ahmed Musavi Hindi's father Din Ali Shah came to India from the Middle East and then settled in Barabanki. Ahmed Musavi always kept his connection with India alive by adding 'Hindi' to his name. He is considered a supporter of Islamic revivalism. He died in 1869 and was buried in Karbala. His grandson Ayatollah Khomeini later led the Iranian Islamic Revolution in 1979 and turned Iran into a theocracy.

No to War: Syed Nihal Ahmad Kazmi's Peace Plea

He became the country's first Supreme Leader, and even today the foundation of Iranian power rests on his ideas. Meanwhile, Khomeini's descendant Syed Nihal Ahmed Kazmi, who lives in Kintur village, is terming the current war as wrong. He said that “There should be no war; innocent people are being killed in it. In any case, peace and dialogue should be the only way.”

This is a rare chapter in history, where a person from a small village became a part of the family that laid the foundation of one of the world’s most talked-about revolutions. This shows how history and heritage go beyond the boundaries of geography and create a global story.