Now that Rishi Sunak has become the new Prime Minister of the UK, UK contracts from IT India Infosys will continue to be vetted for conflicts of interest. Reason: Sunak is the son-in-law of NR Narayana Murthy, co-founder of Infosys.
Sunak was born to parents of Indian descent in Southampton, England, in 1980, and married businessman Akshata Murthy in 2009, writes British technology site The Register. Murthy is an Indian national and IT services giant Infosys is a family business: his father is CEO and (co-)founder. He owns just under one percent of the company, making him a paper billionaire.
Although Murthy is no longer involved in the Infosys business, the company has many contracts in the UK, including a recent £22 million order to replace its SAP R/3 system with Oracle Fusion for East Sussex County Council.
The contract is expected to be under a magnifying glass to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest. Patrick van IJzendoorn, correspondent in London for De Volkskrant, also suspects this in the ‘Volkskrant every day’ podcast, episode ‘Money is the weakness of the rich new British Prime Minister‘.
Proud
Incidentally, those at Infosys are extremely proud of Sunak’s appointment as the new UK Prime Minister, writes The Register. NR CEO and father-in-law Narayana Murthy told Asia news agency ANI: ‘Congratulations to Rishi. We are proud of him and wish him success. We are sure he will do what is best for the British people.”
Sunak became the first British Prime Minister of South Asian descent, as well as the first non-white politician to hold the post. Former chief financial officer of Infosys V Balakrishnan called the event a “historic moment” and the appointment of a “migrant” to the position as a sign of a “mature democracy.” (Even though Sunak was actually born in the UK and not a migrant, according to The Register).
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