Daijiworld Media Network - London (SHP)
London, Dec 18: British cabinet minister Alok Sharma and chief secretary to the Treasury Rishi Sunak took oath as members of the parliament in the new House of Commons on Tuesday holding the Bhagavad Gita. Their move displayed diverse nature of Johnson's cabinet.
Agra-born Sharma (52) who is the International Development Secretary, was elected for the fourth time from Reading West, while Sunak (39), the son-in-law of Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy, was re-elected the third time from Richmond, Yorkshire.
The Indian origin lawmakers were spotted holding the revered Bhagavad Gita during their oath ceremony. Sharma and Sunak placed their hands on the sacred text and recited the oath, "I (name of Member) swear by Almighty God that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, her heirs and successors, according to law. So help me God."
Members of the House of Commons and the House of Lords take an oath of allegiance to the crown. There is no setlist of sacred texts MPs may use. However, they can decide which text they prefer to take oath on and effort is made to ensure it is provided. If they object to swearing the oath, they can make a solemn affirmation.
The elections which took place on Thursday in the UK documented intake of the most diverse set of ethnic minority communities in British history: 65 non-whites, including 15 of Indian origin, and 19 first-time MPs.
Like most of the members in the House of Commons, Prime Minister Boris Johnson took the oath holding the Bible, he said, “I would say it is one of the best parliaments this country has ever produced with more female members than ever before, with more black and minority ethnic members than ever before."
According to Josh Westerling of think-tank British Future, “The rapid acceleration in this decade is now helping to give us a more representative parliament. The number of ethnic minority MPs has risen at each of the last nine general elections since the first four black and Asian MPs of the post-war era were elected in 1987”.