Sunak recounts personal anecdote – and addresses racist comment by Reform campaigners
A short while ago, Rishi Sunak gave a speech BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, also known as Neasden Temple, which is a traditional Hindu temple in London.
Rishi Sunak, who is of the Hindu faith, told attendees: “Like all of you, I draw inspiration and comfort from my faith.
“I was proud to be sworn in as a member of parliament on the Bhagavad Gita [one of Hinduism’s most prominent sacred texts].
“Our faith teaches us to do our duty, and not fret about the outcome as long as one does it faithfully.”
“My family also strengthen my commitment to service,” the PM said.
He spoke about the philanthropic work that his mother-in-law does in India, and praises his wife as “the greatest support that any husband could ever have” and “someone committed to a life of service”.
To the attendees, Mr Sunak said: “I want to start by thanking all of you for your support, your prayers, and your love. You have been with me every step of the way.
“On the hardest days in this job, I have felt your backing, and I know the pride that it is to have a British-Asian prime minister, and I am determined to never let you down.”
The PM argued that so many Indians are Conservatives because “our values bind us together”, citing education, hard work, and family.
Mr Sunak said: “One of my most memorable moments of the last few years came on Diwali, sixty years after my [grandmother] boarded a plane in East Africa – her first ever, all by herself – to come ahead and make a new life for her family here in this country.
“Sixty years after that moment, her great-granddaughters, my girls, they played in the street outside our home.”
They “had fun like so many other families do on Diwali – except, the street that they were playing in was Downing Street”.
In reference to the racial slur a Reform UK campaigner had used about him, he said that the “events of the last few days should not make us forget that the United Kingdom is the world’s most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy, and we should all by uplifted by that”.
In conclusion, the PM said: “Thank you for all your support. I can only hope that I can make you all proud every day.”
https://news.sky.com/story/election-2024-poll-sunak-starmer-debate-conservatives-labour-reform-lib-dem-12593360
