After India’s cricket win over Pakistan in a T20 World Cup thriller in Melbourne, the news of Rishi Sunak set to become the first Indian origin prime minister of Britain have almost come as a Diwali bonanza for Indians and the diaspora worldwide.
The 42-year-old former Chancellor of the Exchequer, “whose resignation helped start the cascade that buried (Boris) Johnson,” according to the NewYorker, is, as other newspapers call him, a “Hindu millionaire” on the cusp of making history.
Britain’s political drama heightened with Liz Truss resigning as Prime Minister on 20 October, just 44 days after taking office. Following her resignation, the opposition Labour Party called for an immediate general election. But Sunak, immediately after being selected by Tory MPs, ruled out elections saying his party had to either “unite or die”.
While Boris Johnson, Truss’ predecessor’ made a bid for a comeback, he backed out on Sunday. Also, with Penny Mordaunt withdrawing from the leadership contest minutes before the deadline, Sunak, who earlier lost the Conservative leadership to Truss, emerged the winner after a three-day race to become leader of the Conservative Party.
While Sunak’s election is no doubt historical, Pallavi Roy, Reader (Associate Professor), SOAS University of London, tells The Indian Sun that “he is not a PM who can unite either the country or the Conservatives because Johnson remains popular with the membership and a substantial section of the MPs. On his politics, Labour voting Indians are unlikely to switch to Tory just for him. Beyond that he has a enormous task and not sure he has the experience to see it through”.
Roy adds, “It will be crucial how he forms his cabinet. It has to be representative of Tory factions and he will have to at the same time reward his loyalists. Add to this, he will need a cabinet that also brings in experience. That combination is a tough ask. If he gets it right, he at least starts right. But he is ‘inheriting’ a tired and even angry country.
“Also remember that his mandate is even smaller in a sense than Truss’. She got voted in by MPs and party members. Party members have had no say this time. And the rest of the country will just have to lump it and wait for the next general election. That doesn’t count as being representative.”
Sunak is the son-in-law of N R Narayana Murthy, founder of Infosys. A quick Google search says he was born on 2 May, 1980, and served as Leader of the Conservative Party since 24 October 2022. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022 and Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2019 to 2020. He has also been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Richmond (Yorks) since 2015, according to Wikipedia.
Sunak was born in Southampton to parents of Punjabi Indian descent. According to Africa Archives, “His father Usher Sanak was born and raised in Kenya when it was still a British colony, while his mother Usha Sunak was born in Tanzania when it was a British territory.”
He met Murthy’s daughter Akshata while studying at Stanford. It is said that Sunak’s ascension is a “breakthrough for diversity” for the Indian diaspora in Britain, “whose long struggle against racism and prejudice is rarely a prominent issue in British politics,” according to The New York Times.
Sunak is proud of his Hindu background and took oath office as a member of Parliament on the holy book of Gita. It is also said that as chancellor of the Exchequer he famously lit up his official residence at 11 Downing Street to celebrate Diwali.
With a background in hedge funds, it is also his sizable wealth that has raised attention in the past. Sunak studied at the elite Winchester College, the Oxford University and later at Stanford.
Sunak acknowledges the challenges that lay ahead of him. In a statement on Sunday, he said, “The United Kingdom is a great country but we face a profound economic crisis… I want to fix our economy, unite our Party and deliver for our country.”
Congratulations are pouring in for Sunak poised to be Britain’s first Prime Minister of colour and the youngest in 200 years.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “As you become UK PM, I look forward to working closely together on global issues, and implementing Roadmap 2030. Special Diwali wishes to the ‘living bridge’ of UK Indians, as we transform our historic ties into a modern partnership.”
Rest assured for the Indian diaspora in Britain and worldwide, this Diwali is a celebration in many ways.
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