The UK parliamentary elections may have disappointed a lot of Indians over Rishi Sunak losing power, but a north Bihar town is celebrating the success of a son of the soil. Kanishka Narayan, an MP of the Labour Party which has returned to power after a decade and a half, has his roots in Muzaffarpur, situated about 70 km from the state capital. "The mood is upbeat in our housing complex, where many distinctly remember having seen Kanishka as a toddler," said Jayant Kumar, Director of the city-based Shri Krishna Law College.
Kumar's younger brother Santosh is the father of the 33-year-old MP representing Vale of Glamorgan, who entered politics after giving up a career in the British civil services. "We hail from a village in Goraul block of adjoining Vaishali district. A passion for law runs in our blood. Our late father Krishna Kumar had founded the law college here," said the proud uncle.
He recalled Kanishka was born in Muzaffarpur and studied at a local school till standard III. "His parents thereafter moved to Delhi. They shifted to Cardiff when the boy was 12 years old. Both his father and mother Chetana Sinha worked as solicitors in the UK," Kumar said. "We look forward to better relations between the UK and India given the Labour Party's soft stance towards our country and migrants living in Britain. That a member of our family has the opportunity to do his bit is icing on the cake," he said.
Kumar said he was filled with excitement at the prospect of meeting his nephew in a new avatar. "The UK has always been like a second home. I have spent four years of my student life in Wales. My daughter and son-in-law live there. It is an extended family," said the uncle.
(With inputs from agency)
