Akshata Murty, the Indian First Lady of Great Britain, made an unexpected foray into the political arena on Wednesday as she took the stage to introduce her "best friend" and UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, for his inaugural speech at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester.
During her lighthearted and personal address, Akshata Murty asserted that her husband, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, was entirely unaware of her "unplanned participation" as the warm-up act for the highlight of the annual conference. She also disclosed that her decision had taken their daughters, Krishna and Anoushka, by surprise.
The 43-year-old daughter of Infosys co-founder Narayan Murty expressed her pride in Sunak's numerous accomplishments. She emphasized that it was his "honesty and integrity" that initially drew her to him when they crossed paths as students at Stanford University in their twenties.
"Rishi and I are each other's closest confidants; we function as a team, and I couldn't envision being anywhere else today but here to show my support for him and the party," Murty declared.
Recalling their meeting as students in the United States at the age of 24, she revealed that she was immediately struck by two aspects of Sunak: his deep affection for his home country, the United Kingdom, and his genuine desire to ensure that as many people as possible could access the opportunities he had been fortunate to receive. She emphasized how this commitment had always motivated him, making her choice to be with him an effortless one.
According to Murty, the one word that encapsulates her husband is "aspiration," which drives him to work tirelessly for a better future for the UK.
"When times get tough, I remind Rishi that he's fighting for his values, that he's fighting for this party's values, fully aware that the road ahead is arduous. Success is hard-won," she remarked.
Injecting moments of levity into her speech, Murty confirmed media reports about Sunak's penchant for romantic comedies and described him as "fun, thoughtful, and compassionate."
She lauded his character's strength, honesty, and integrity, with a firm grasp of right from wrong as the qualities that had initially attracted her to him. Even today, after 14 years of marriage, she finds these attributes compelling.
As she concluded her speech to sustained applause from the Tory audience, a visibly moved Sunak took the stage. During his eagerly anticipated address, he began by acknowledging that Murty was the "best long-term decision for a brighter future" he had ever made.
Sunak underscored that since becoming Prime Minister in October of the previous year, the government had accomplished "positive things." He went on to emphasize that the political system over the last three decades had favored convenient short-term choices over the right ones.
He asserted, "It doesn't have to be this way, and it won't be this way."
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