London, November 11 (Language) British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Saturday expressed hope for a bright tomorrow and wished Diwali and Bandi Chhor Diwas.
Sunak, 43, mentioned his Indian heritage in his traditional message from 10 Downing Street (the Prime Minister’s residence) to Hindus and Sikhs in Britain and around the world. “Happy Diwali to everyone celebrating around the world and across the UK, and a very Happy Bandi Chhod Day to our friends in the Sikh community,” Sunak said.
“With the light of lamps, let this be a moment when we look forward to a brighter future,” he said. As Prime Minister, my commitment is to change things for the better. I believe that Diwali, as a symbol of the victory of light over darkness, is a symbol of striving for a brighter tomorrow.”
“As your first British Asian prime minister and a devout Hindu, I also hope it can be a wonderful celebration of the ethnic and cultural diversity that makes Britain the place it is today,” he said.
Earlier this week, Sunak and his wife Akshata Murthy hosted a special Diwali celebration at 10 Downing Street, which was also attended by prominent NRIs and Bollywood stars – Akshay Kumar, Twinkle Khanna and Preity Zinta.
The Prime Minister’s office-cum-residence was decorated with marigold flowers, rangoli and candles on Wednesday evening. It has been one year since Sunak took charge as Britain’s first Indian Prime Minister.
A day later, on Thursday, entrepreneur and head of Noor Group of Hotels UK, Roop Pratap Chaudhary said he was among the select guests at a special ‘Diwali get-together’ hosted by Sunak and his wife at Downing Street.
Language Amit Rajkumar
