JAKARTA - From wearing the holy thread to'respecting' the cow, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak never forgets the roots in the midst of his busy schedule, including on the sidelines of activities in the British government he is undergoing.
Most recently, before entering his new home, 10 Downing Street, the official residence as well as the UK PM's office, PM Sunak did a 'looja' or 'puja', praying like most Hindus do.
All eyes were on Rishi Sunak when he became the first prime minister to come from India in England and the youngest in more than 200 years. His willingness to 'put his religion on his sleeves' has made it proud not only for Britons but also for Indians, cited from Firstpost 27 October.
In India, when news broke of his appointment, people began celebrating it. The front page of the Indian newspaper contains reports; 'Rishi Sunak, a Hindu is a new British PM', the Times of India said. News channels and the well-known NDTV website say the Indian son rose above the empire. Another well-known media, India Today, wrote Sunak gets the top job in the UK even though he is Hindu.
Rishi Sunak was born in the England Southhampton area of an Indian family of a pharmacist mother, Usha Sunak, and Hasanvir Sunak's father who is a general practitioner at the National Health Service (NHS).
Since entering politics, Sunak has always called himself 'in India' and embraced Hinduism.
When he was a minister in the Cabinet of Theresa May, Sunak took an oath of office at Bhagavad Gita. At that time he said, "I am now a British citizen. But my religion is Hindu. My religious and cultural heritage is India. I am proud to say, I am a Hindu and my identity is also a Hindu."
He repeated taking the oath of office at Gita when he was appointed minister of finance in 2020.
Not only that, Sunak also refrained from eating beef, as in a 2015 interview with Business Standard, he said he never ate beef and "it was never a problem".
Rishi Sunak (potential PM of UK) and his wife doing Gau Mata Pooja in the UK. This strongly shows that India has 'arrived' on the world stage and we are no longer embarrassed or ashamed to display our rich cultural heritage. Jai Sanatan Dharam. #rishisunak #gaumata #dharma pic.twitter.com/jE8xtrtO68
— Mairan Sewtahal (@Mairansewtahal) August 20, 2022
PM Sunak also placed the statue of Dewa Ganesha at his desk. In an interview with Politico, he was quoted as saying he had 'left the idol' at 11 Downing Street, the UK Finance Minister's office, to 'accompany' Prime Minister Boris Johnson while struggling to contain the coronavirus in 2020.
PM Sunak also performs Hindu rituals and visits temples from time to time. In August, as he competed to replace Boris Johnson, Sunak was seen performing a 'gau poolja' (coupling) in London.
That same month, he was also seen with his wife, Akshata, visiting the temple of Bhaktivedantaap to celebrate Sri Krishna's birthday.
Despite growing up in England and going to mire, the University of Oxford and then Stanford, Sunak is proud of its cultural roots and it is clear with his choice to wear the Hindu holy common thread 'Kalawa'.
He was seen wearing a holy thread on his right wrist during a meeting with King Charles III on October 25, when the king formally appointed him new prime minister. He was also seen wearing the thread as he entered the 10th Downing Street on Tuesday.
Saat Sunak dan keluarganya, Akshata Murty istri yang juga putri co-founder Infosys Narayan Murthy, bersama dua buah hatinya Krishna dan Ano menjak, pindah ke Downing Street 10, mereka tidak 'berupunya aturan.'
PM Sunak juga melakukan Diwali. Setelah memadamkan lampu minyak Diwali di luar Downing Street 11 pada November 2020, saat menjabat sebagai menteri keuangan pertama Inggris asal India, menjelang Festival Diwali pada 12 November 2020.
On October 27 yesterday, PM Sunak shared a photo of the celebration of Diwali at 10 Downing Street on Wednesday evening, saying he would do everything he could to build a UK where children could turn on their dyas - small oil lights - and "in the future with hope," as quoted by The National News.
It is known, Diwali, a five-day light festival, is celebrated by Hindus, Shakh and Jain around the world.
Brilliant to drop into tonight’s Diwali reception in No10.I will do everything I can in this job to build a Britain where our children and our grandchildren can light their Diyas and look to the future with hope.Happy #Diwali everyone! pic.twitter.com/g4yhAGhToz
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) October 26, 2022
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