Rishi Sunak, Indian origin British politician was elected unopposed as the new leader of the governing Conservative Party, following Penny Mordaunt's withdrawal from the race on Monday. It means he created history and he will be the next prime minister of the United Kingdom. Sunak has become the first Indian origin to hold the top post.
The 42-year-old former chancellor was comfortably in the lead, having secured the public backing of over half the 357 Tory MPs – way above the 100 minimum required to make the shortlist. This means Sunak is poised to walk through the door of 10 Downing Street in London after an audience with King Charles III in Buckingham Palace, the timeframe of which will become known soon.
Meanwhile, not only Sunak but his family is also popular for their India connection.
Here’re details about his India connections
- Rishi Sunak’s wife Akshata Murthy is daughter of IT giant Infosys founder Narayan Murthy
- Sunak and Akshata have two daughters - Krishna and Anoushka
- Akshata holds a 0.93% stake in Infosys, making her one of the wealthiest women in Britain
- Akshata and Sunak are the 222nd richest people in Britain, with a combined fortune of £730 million as of 2022
- She was in news for her claim of non-domiciled status in the UK
- Sunak, born on 12 May 1980 in Southampton, Hampshire, to African-born Hindu parents of Indian descent, Yashvir and Usha Sunak
- Yashvir was a general practitioner, and Usha was a pharmacist, who ran a local pharmacy
- His grandfathers were born in Punjab province, British India
- His grandfathers migrated from East Africa with their families to the UK in the 1960s
- His paternal grandfather, Ramdas Sunak, was from Gujranwala (in present-day Pakistan) and moved to Nairobi in 1935 to work as a clerk, where he was joined by his wife Suhag Rani Sunak from Delhi in 1937.
(With PTI input)
Also Read: Rishi Sunak, first Indian-origin UK PM: 10 things to know about him
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