Australia: Victoria's opposition leader criticises govt for implementing discriminatory policy against Indians

AUSTRALIA: Victoria's Shadow Minister for Transport Matthew Guy has slammed Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese-led government for what he termed "racist policies" of knocking out Indians trying to visit their families, The Australia Today reported. He said that the federal government has implemented a "discriminatory policy" against Indians, especially those trying to visit their family in Australia.

In his address at Victoria Parliament, Matthew Guy said that people in their 60s with a good job, property with life back in Delhi who have visited the US, Canada and the UK do not get a tourist visit to travel to Australia due to the "discriminatory policy" implemented by the federal government, The Australia Today reported.

Guy said, "Last night I raised a very important matter on the adjournment debate and it's got to do with the Albanese government's frankly racist policies of knocking out Indians trying to visit their family here in Australia. I raised a number of examples where we have Indian health workers living in the UK who have visited other countries around the world simply trying to come to Australia on a tourist visa to visit their family being sponsored here in Australia."

"Other examples were people in their 60s, government workers, with a good job, with property, with a life back in Delhi, who have been to the United States, to Canada, to Great Britain, but can't get a tourist visa to come to Australia because the federal government have now instituted a discriminatory policy against Indians, particularly those wanting to come visit their family in Australia," he added.

He accused the former Minister for Multicultural Affairs of trying to knock out his statement. He questioned Victoria's Labor government for supporting a "racist policy" against Indians in Australia, according to The Australia Today report.

Matthew Guy said, "What was most concerning is that the former Minister for Multicultural Affairs, the member for Bundoora, tried to knock out my statement to try and get the state government to advocate for Victoria's Indian community. Why would someone do that? Why would the state Labor government support a racist policy against Indians in Australia? Why is the Labor Party and the left in this country institutionally racist? Why is the left in this country racist? Why do they hate Indian communities in this state? Why do they hate the Indian community?"

Notably, the ties between India and Australia is underpinned by shared values of "pluralistic, Westminster-style democracies, Commonwealth traditions, expanding economic engagement and increasing high-level interaction," according to the Indian High Commission in Australia.

In a statement, the High Commission of India in Australia stated, "The longstanding people-to-people ties, ever increasing Indian students coming to Australia for higher education, growing tourism, and sporting links, especially Cricket and Hockey, have played a significant role in further strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries."

The ties between India and Australia have charted a whole new trajectory of transformational growth. Bilateral cooperation between two nations has witnessed "exponential growth" in existing frameworks of cooperation and further expanded across a wide spectrum of new areas opening up new possibilities, both at bilateral as well as global levels.

The High Commission of India in Australia stated, "The Indian community in Australia continues to grow and importance, with the population of about 9.76,000 (Census 2021). After England, India is the second largest migrant group in Australia . There is a constant flow of students and tourists from India. The growing significance of the community is reflected in the large-scale celebration of Indian festivals in Australia."