Rishi’s billionaire father-in-law congratulates new PM and reveals his pride as he says the Tory leader ‘will do his best for the people of Britain’

• Narayana Murthy has an estimated £3.9bn fortune from his company, Infosys
• Tycoon said he was ‘confident’ Rishi would ‘do his best for the people of the UK’
• Mr Sunak met Mr Murthy’s daughter, Akshata, while studying at Stanford  

New Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been congratulated by his father-in-law, the billionaire IT tycoon Narayana Murthy. 

In a rare public statement, the 76-year-old said: ‘We are proud. We are confident he will do his best for the people of the United Kingdom.’

Mr Murthy, has previously been dubbed ‘India’s Bill Gates’ due to his role pioneering the country’s tech boom. 

The scion of a middle class family, he amassed unimaginable wealth after founding tech company Infosys in the early 80s and is now worth an estimated £3.9bn.

Narayana Murthy and his wife, Sudha, with his daughter, Akshata, and Rishi Sunak at a wedding reception in Bangalore 

His daughter, Akshata Murthy, met Mr Sunak, also 42, while they were studying at Stanford University in the US.  

The couple share two daughters, Krishna and Anoushka, and will be the first Hindu family to occupy Number 10. 

Mr Sunak is the UK’s first PM Asian heritage, and the youngest for more than 200 years at the age of 42. 

The news has been welcomed in India, with the country’s leader, Narendra Modi, sending his ‘warmest congratulations’. 

Meanwhile, parliamentarian Raghav Chadha tweeted: ‘Today, as India celebrates Diwali in its 75th year as an independent nation, the UK gets an Indian-origin Prime Minister. History comes full circle.’

TV channel NDTV called it a ‘stunning’ while CNBC TV18 described his rise as ‘nothing short of a miracle’ and said Sunak had made the impossible happen. 

Mr Sunak is the UK’s first PM Asian heritage, and the youngest for more than 200 years at the age of 42

It also praised British society for giving Sunak the opportunity to reach the highest office. 

‘The greater credit is to Britain itself, for bringing in institutions and developing a culture where Rishi Sunak could be possible,’ it said.

Together, the Sunaks have a combined fortune of £730 million, the Sunday Times Rich List revealed in May.     

Ms Murthy has previously come under public scrutiny for her non-domiciled tax status, which meant she did not have to pay tax on earnings outside the UK. 

It is thought the bulk of her £430m wealth comes from Infosys, which is based in Bangalore.

After the tax revelation was revealed, the couple faced intense backlash – which led to Ms Murthy ultimately giving up her non-dom status and promising to pay tax in the UK on the fortunes she brought in from around the world.

She released a statement defending her ‘entirely legal’ arrangement, but ultimately decided to give it up. 

The statement read: ‘It has become clear that many do not feel it is compatible with my husband’s role as Chancellor.

‘I understand and appreciate the British sense of fairness and I do not wish my tax status to be a distraction for my husband or to affect my family.’   

Akshata and Rishi have been married to since 2009 after meeting Stanford University

The couple have a combined fortune of £730 million, according to The Sunday Times Rich List

In an interview with The Times in August, as he languished behind Liz Truss in the first Tory leadership contest, Mr Sunak gave voters an insight into his marriage.

He told the newspaper: ‘My family all drink, my wife definitely drinks. It massively irritates her that I don’t.’

The former chancellor added he was finally persuaded to have a few shots shortly before his wedding in India in 2009, but admitted he didn’t like the taste.

Mr Sunak added there are several other ways in which the couple are like chalk and cheese – with housekeeping being their biggest difference.

‘I’m incredibly tidy, she’s very messy,’ he said. ‘I’m much more organised, she is more spontaneous… she is not going to love me for saying this but I’ll be honest with you, she is not big on the whole tidying thing. She is a total nightmare, clothes everywhere… and shoes… oh God, shoes.’

Ms Murthy, a former fashion designer, and her brother Rohan were largely raised by their paternal grandparents while their ambitious mother and father pursued careers in engineering and science.

The couple have two daughters, Krishna and Anoushka (pictured with their parents at Rishi’s campaign to be leader of the Conservative Party in July) 

While her father Narayana went on to found Infosys and build his fortune, her mother Sudha became the first female engineer to work for India’s biggest car manufacturer TELCO.

She had a passion for fashion from an early age and has recalled how her mother scolded her for paying more attention to glamour than she did her studies.

After finishing school, Ms Murthy moved to the US, where she completed degrees in economics and French at Claremont McKenna College in California and studied at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in LA.

It was when she moved to Stanford University to study for an MBA that she met her husband, who was studying at the top college after being granted a Fulbright scholarship.

Mr Sunak recently admitted there was ‘clearly something’ there when he and his wife first met – and added he is an enormous fan of rom-coms, prompting him to change some of his classes so that he could sit next to his wife.

Four years later, in 2009, they married in a lavish ceremony in Bengaluru in India, which was the couple’s home for the next four years.

Akshata, who is known for her love of designer items, is seen handing cups of tea to members of the Press following her husband’s resignation as chancellor in July

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