Facing criticism over her wife Akshata Murthy’s family business ties with Russia amid their invasion of Ukraine, her husband and British politician Rishi Sunak has said that “at least, I didn’t wake up and slap anyone”. .
The comment was in reference to a recent incident where actor Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock after he made fun of his wife Jada Pinkett Smith at an Oscars ceremony.
Sunak, 41, is the Chancellor of the British Exchequer and his wife Akshata Murthy is the daughter of tech giant Infosys founder Narayana Murthy. Akshata Murthy has been accused of collecting “blood money” in dividends for the amount of her stake in Infosys as the company continues its operations in Russia despite several countries exiting due to war.
In an interview with the BBC, Sunak said, “It’s very upsetting and, I think, it’s wrong for people to try to come on my wife, and you know, really, in relation to my father-in-law. For whom I have nothing but great pride and admiration for what they have achieved.”
He said that any attempt to smear is not going to change me because Narayana Murthy is amazing and has achieved a huge amount.
Sunak has said that he has “nothing to do” with Infosys. Their spokesperson has also stated that Akshata has no involvement in the company’s operating decisions. “I have absolutely no idea because I have nothing to do with that company,” Sunak said in another interview.
Sunak has encouraged UK firms to break ties with Russia in the wake of the country invading Ukraine.
“Someone said, ‘Joe Root, Will Smith, and I – not the best weekend for any of us’. But I think, on reflection, Will Smith and I both attacked our wives – at least I didn’t wake up and slap anyone, which is good,” he said.
At the 94th Academy Awards, Will Smith took to the stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock for joking about his wife, actor Jada Pinkett Smith’s clipped hair, due to baldness.
Infosys set up its engineering center in Russia’s capital Moscow in 2016 to support its customer, Ansaldo Energia, which was developing gas turbines to sell to Russian power plants and other customers.
The company said that “Infosys supports and supports peace between Russia and Ukraine” and has pledged USD 1 million to “relief efforts for victims of the war from Ukraine”.
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February and the invasion triggered Europe’s biggest refugee crisis since World War II, with more than four million Ukrainians leaving the country and a quarter of the population displaced.
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