6 Punjabis in fray for Australian federal, senate polls

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Bathinda, May 20

After making their presence felt in the Canadian and Britain parliaments, Punjabis are now trying to make their mark in the Australian federal and senate elections. All 151 seats in the lower house and 40 of the 76 seats in the upper house are up for grabs during the election to be held on May 21.

As many as 17 Indian-origin candidates, including six Punjabis, are contesting the elections in Australia. The six Punjabis are Navdeep Singh Sidhu on the Green party ticket from Queensland, Rajan Vaid (One Nation Party) from Makin, Jugandeep Singh (Liberal party) from Chifley, Lovepreet Singh Nanda (Independent) from Greenway, Trimann Gill (Australian Labour Party) and Harmeet Kaur (Group M), both from South Australia Senate.

One of the prominent Indian candidates in the fray is Dave Sharma, a sitting MP, who is recontesting on the Liberal party ticket from Wentworth. In the 2019 polls, Dave scripted history by becoming the first Indian-origin lawmaker in the country’’s parliament after winning a seat in Sydney suburb.

Lisa Singh was the first woman of Indian origin elected to the Australian parliament as a senator from the state of Tasmania in the federal election in August 2010.

In this polls, all major parties have made coordinated efforts to appeal to the Indian community by promising millions of dollars for cultural organisations, fielding candidates with Indian heritage, and capitalising on issues important to them — especially in key western Sydney seats like Greenway and Parramatta and the Victorian electorate of La Trobe.