Jul 8, 2022
By: BI India BureauAt least two Indian-origin Conservative MPs — Suella Braverman and Rishi Sunak — are expected to run for the UK’s prime ministership, after Boris Johnson resigned yesterday.
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Indian-origin attorney general Suella Braverman was the first person to formally declare a leadership bid even before Johnson quit on July 7, 2022. “If there is a leadership contest, I will put my name into the ring,” she said on July 6.
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Suella Braverman was appointed as the attorney general, the most senior law officer that oversees the Crown Prosecution Service, two years ago. She grew up in Wembley, studied law at Cambridge and campaigned for Brexit.
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Rishi Sunak, whose resignation as a Chancellor triggered a series of resignations in the Boris Johnson government ultimately leading to the fall — is believed to be a contender as the next UK Prime Minister. He has not formally announced his bid yet.
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Rishi Sunak is the son-in-law of Infosys founder Narayana Murthy, and married to Akshata Murthy. He took up his first full cabinet position in 2020. Appointment of any one — Sunak or Braverman — would make them the first Indian origin person to be UK’s PM.
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Foreign secretary Liz Truss, former health secretary of Pakistani-origin Sajid Javid and defence secretary Ben Wallace are also expected to throw their hats in the ring.
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Indians have already made their mark in international politics after Kamala Harris became US’ vice president. She also became the first female acting president last November, after President Joe Biden temporarily transferred his powers to her. She is also the first female vice president and woman of colour in the White House.
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Last year, Indian-origin Anita Anand became the defense minister of Canada. She replaced another Indian-origin politician Harjit Sajjan. In 2019, four of the 36 ministers in the Canadian parliament were of Indian origin.
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Several of the world’s biggest companies — including Google (Alphabet Inc), Microsoft, Twitter, Chanel, Adobe Inc, IBM, Pepsico, Palo Alto Networks, Arista Networks, Only Fans and Mastercard — are currently being led by Indian CEOs.
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