Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday commenced his visit to India, by taking part in the Holi festivities in Ahmedabad – apparently to send out a message to New Delhi and soothe the feathers ruffled by the vandalism on several Hindu temples there, allegedly by the pro-Khalistan Sikh activists.
“Australia is a better place because of our large, diverse Indian-Australian community,” Albanese tweeted just before taking the flight to Ahmedabad. His comment came weeks after the High Commission of India in Canberra termed the incidents of vandalism on the temples as “clear attempts to sow hatred and division among the peaceful multi-faith and multi-cultural Indian-Australian community”.
India is one of the top sources of skilled immigrants to Australia. As per the 2021 Census, around 9,76,000 people in Australia trace their ancestry to Indian origin, making them the second largest group of overseas-born residents in Australia.
This is Albanese’s maiden visit to India after he took over as the Prime Minister of Australia on May 23 last year.
“Honoured to celebrate Holi in Ahmedabad, India. Holi’s message of renewal through the triumph of good over evil is an enduring reminder for all of us,” he tweeted after taking part in the festival of colours. “No matter what your faith is or where you’ve come from—we celebrate and value what unites us.”
Albanese and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be at the toss for the fourth and final match of the India-Australia cricket test series on Thursday.
He noted during an interview with a radio channel on Wednesday that the stadium where the India-Australia final test match would be played was named after his host and it was twice the size of the cricket stadium at Perth Down Under.
The two prime ministers will also meet in New Delhi on Friday for formal talks.
Modi is likely to convey to Albanese his expectation that the anti-India hate campaigns and secessionist propaganda in Australia would not be tolerated and stern actions would be taken against the culprits responsible for the vandalism of the places of worship.
The Shree Laxmi Narayan Temple in Brisbane became the latest target of the vandals on Saturday. Earlier, the Swami Narayan Temple and the ISKCON Temple in Melbourne and the Sri Shiva Vishnu Temple in Carrum Downs had been vandalised between January 12 and 23, with anti-India and pro-Khalistani graffiti being painted on the walls of the shrines.
The High Commission of India in Canberra has been conveying to the Government of Australia the concerns of New Delhi over the activities of the pro-Khalistan Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) Down Under.
The SFJ held a referendum in Melbourne and Sydney in Australia on January 30 last in order to drum up support for the secession of Khalistan from India. It had conducted similar referendums in Canada and the United Kingdom in the past.
“Looking forward to productive deliberations to further the India-Australia friendship,” Modi tweeted responding to Albanese.