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Melbourne: As Union defence minister Rajnath Singh will soon visit Australia to sign crucial defence deals, the Indian immigrants down under will expect him to engage the Australian government on the growing social antipathy against them. 

Indian-born migrants have become the latest sticking point between the far-right and anti-fascist forces of Australia. On August 31, four major cities of Australia – Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide – and some other towns witnessed far-right parties’ rallying against Indian immigrants in what was their biggest-ever mobilisation. These rallies specifically targeted Indian migrants, the second-largest immigrant community in Australia after the British. According to a 2023 estimate by the Department of Home Affairs in Australia, there are 8,45,800 Indian-born migrants in the country. 

Far-right parties accused the Indian community of taking over Australia and are blaming them for the housing crisis. These rallies found an unnatural supporter in Liberal Party senator, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, who went a step further to accuse the Labour government of allowing more Indians into the country because they form a part of its vote bank. Although the Liberal Party has been attempting damage control after Price’s dog-whistling, the message is out. 

Indians are likely to become the central reference point in anti-immigration politics in Australia now.

Why have Indians taken precedence in far-right politics?

Unlike in countries such as Canada, the US, and the UK, the Indian diaspora’s participation in Australian politics has been elusive. They have supported both the Liberals and Labour at different times but have not developed direct representational politics in the country. Many first-generation Indians kept their heads down, worked hard, and focused on securing dignity and a better life. However, the changing dynamics of immigration rules in the UK, Europe, Canada, and now the US are closing doors for Indian aspirations abroad, leaving Australia, New Zealand, and a few other countries as the remaining options for migration.

On September 13, anti-fascist groups organised rallies in response to far-right mobilisations against immigrants in Melbourne and other places in Australia. Photo by arrangement

The far right is second guessing this trend. As they are organised, well-funded, and with control over both traditional and new media, they are........

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