Indians embrace next Britain Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, as their own

The next Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has embraced his Indian and Hindu heritage

The next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, has embraced his Indian and Hindu heritage — and on Monday, people across the former British colony proudly celebrated his victory.

Social media and TV channels in India were awash with congratulations for the 42-year-old Mr. Sunak, who is set to become the first person of colour to lead Britain. The former Treasury chief was chosen by a governing Conservative Party desperate for a safe pair of hands to guide the country through economic and political turbulence.

For many Indians, who are celebrating Diwali, one of the most important Hindu festivals, it was a instance to say: He is one of our own.

“It is a moment of pride for India that the country which ruled us for many years has now a prime minister of Indian heritage,” said Manoj Garg, a New Delhi businessman.

Mr. Sunak’s grandparents hailed from Punjab state before the subcontinent was divided into two countries — India and Pakistan — after British rule ended in 1947. They moved to East Africa in the late 1930s before finally settling in the U.K. in the 1960s. Sunak was born in 1980 in Southampton on England’s south coast.

His ancestral link is not his only association with India. He is married to Akshata Murty, whose father is Indian billionaire N.R. Narayana Murthy, founder of tech giant Infosys.

In April 2022, it emerged that Murty, who owns a little less than a 1% stake in Infosys, did not pay U.K. taxes on her overseas income. The practice was legal, but it looked bad at a time when Sunak was raising taxes for millions of Britons as chancellor of the Exchequer.