Here are all things Indian about Boris Johnson’s new Cabinet

• Boris Johnson, the United Kingdom’s newly appointed Prime Minister, is leading cabinet with three India-origin members of parliament.
  
• In a letter to the Indian diaspora, Johnson called himself the ‘son-in-law’ of India.
  
• He’s even been chased down by an elephant when attending a wedding in Kerala.
  

UK’s newly elected prime minister, Boris Johnson, is leading a diverse cabinet at 10 Downing Street which includes three Indian-origin members of parliament at the helm — Rishi Sunak, Preeti Patel, and Alok Sharma.

Sunak is incidentally the son-in-law of Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy. And, he has been appointed as the Chief Secretary to the Treasury. He was also a part of Theresa May’s government as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Preeti Patel has achieved a new milestone as Britain’s first India-origin home secretary, and Alok Sharma has been chosen to be the new International Development Secretary.

But, Johnson’s connection with India doesn’t end there.

India’s son-in-law

Johnson called himself the ‘son-in-law’ of India in an open letter he wrote to the Indian diaspora earlier this month.

"When I was with Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi, I stressed that the UK and India are two modern democracies who should work closely together to promote trade and prosperity, improve global security and tackle the challenges our countries face," he stated.

He also told HT, “We need to do far more. India is a massive natural market for the UK.”

When Modi was re elected earlier this year, Johnson tweeted that his congratulations and looked forward to a ‘closer partnership with India’.


Johnson’s family connection

Johnson is indeed the country’s son-in-law. His estranged wife, Marina Wheeler, is half Indian and the niece of late writer Kushwant Singh. Marina’s mother and aunt were both married into Singh’s family,

Dip Singh who is Marina’s mother, was married to Kushwant Singh’s younger brother, Daljit Singh. Her aunt Amarjit Singh was married to Bhagwant Singh, his elder brother.

If you extend the family tree a little further, Bhagwant’s niece is actress Amrita Singh — Saif Ali Khan’s former wife and Sara Ali Khan’s mother.

Johnson has many Indian tales to tell. He was chased down by elephant while attending a wedding in Kerala.