MANISH GUPTA
Ranchi, Oct 25: Indians residing in the UK and those returned from the island country are happy on Rishi Sunak becoming the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, but no one is harbouring any special expectations from the Britisher of Indian origin.
“They followed a democratic process. Sunak has proved his credentials as Chancellor of the Exchequer during the pandemic. I am happy that he has risen to this level with his hard work. But there are concerns related to inflation and continued job losses.
“I am happy but not overjoyed. I won’t jump in happiness. I am happy as he is of Indian origin and we feel associated with him. However, I don’t have any extra expectations with him there,” said Dr S Manohar with the National Health Service (NHS) in Birmingham.
Rishav Gupta, an IT professional based in London, said, “It’s a happy moment for us. I was at an Indian store when the news came in. A lady shared the news and the entire crowd there began cheering and clapping. A lot of samosas were sold yesterday.”
Taurian World School Chairman Amith Bajla, who graduated from London School of Economics in 1998, said, “It’s a historic moment in world politics, particularly in the British political fabric. A ‘coloured’ man, at the helm of affairs in UK politics is a welcome change.
“It cements my trust in the impartial democratic ethos of the UK, and gives me hope that with integrity, hard work and resilience, one has an equal chance to make a pivotal difference even in world politics. With Sunak’s elevation, I am sure the UK-India ties will taste a new flavour and both nations will carve out a new and promising future.”
For Swati Suman, who used to work with Infosys and had the chance to meet Narayana Murthy on the first day of her career, the day has been special. She has been watching the television since morning to know everything about Sunak, the son-in-law of Murthy.
“I feel very proud. It seems like a family member has become the PM of the country. He took oath by placing his hands on the Bhagwad Gita,” the ex-Infoscion said over phone.
However, there are some who are less excited about the development. Vasu Bhardwaj working in the hospitality tourism industry said it does not make any difference to him. “Rishi Sunak is not an Indian. The only thing Indian about him is his name.
“He is just a privileged, upper class snob with a net worth of 730 million pounds. Sunak is as British as Boris Johnson, but sounds less insane than him. He did a decent job as the Chancellor with his package of 350 billion pounds during the pandemic taking care of 80 per cent of the salaries for one-and-a-half years,” Bhardwaj said.
Though people are realistic in their discussions, the social media is abuzz with talks like turning the tables on the UK with “our man” there in 75 years of freedom and unfurling the tricolour in London soon.
