New Delhi: NR Narayana Murthy, Infosys founder and father-in-law of next UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak congratulated his son-in-law as he exuded confidence that the first Indian-origin PM will do his best for the people of the United Kingdom.
An Oxford, and Stanford University alumnae, Sunak is married to Akshata Murthy, the daughter of Narayana Murthy.
“Congratulations to Rishi. We are proud of him and we wish him success. We are confident he will do his best for the people of the United Kingdom,” Infosys founder said.
On Monday, Britain’s Conservative Party announced Rishi Sunak as their leader. Thereby, Rishi Sunak is now set to become the first Asian-origin person to lead the country.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Rishi Sunak on Monday and said he is looking forward to working closely together on global issues.
“Warmest congratulations @RishiSunak! 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,” PM Modi tweeted.
Sunak’s change in fate was triggered by the resignation of Truss after her high-profile sacking and resignation in her cabinet, following a heavily criticised mini-budget that left the UK pound tumbling.
Following Truss’s short stint as British prime minister, Rishi Sunak and former Prime Minister Boris Johnson were seen as frontrunners for the UK PM bid.
But Boris Johnson ruled himself out of the Conservative party leadership race despite claiming he had the required support. The former UK PM said he had come to the conclusion “this would simply not be the right thing to do” as “you can’t govern effectively unless you have a united party in Parliament.”
Sunak is born in Southampton to parents of Indian descent who migrated to Britain from East Africa.
Earlier in April, reports of Akshata’s non-domicile status and alleged tax evasion had created a furore. Sunak had said his wife has been paying all taxes. Her spokesperson had earlier said that Akshata Murthy “has always and will continue to pay UK taxes on all her UK income”.