KHALISTAN EXTREMISM MONITOR
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
A project of the Institute for Conflict Management
Australian government was left stunned with the recent demonstration by Khalistan supporters, which urged them to close down the Honorary Consulate of India in Brisbane.
The Honorary Consulate of India in Brisbane was forced to close down on Wednesday due to safety concerns after Khalistan supporters organised an unauthorised gathering and blocked the entry of the office, days after Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese assured India that his government will not tolerate "extreme actions."
The incident is the latest in a series of radical activities against the Indian community in Australia.
It comes days after Australian Prime Minister Albanese assured his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi that Australia won't tolerate any extreme actions like attacks on religious places.
The Honorary Consulate located on Swann Road in the Taringa suburb of Brisbane was forced to close down after Khalistan supporters blockaded the entry.
Queensland Police says it was an unauthorised gathering, however, they were allowed to enter the consulate property and block anyone from entering it, according to The Australia Today portal.
Parvinder Singh, a resident of regional Queensland, said he took leave from his work to attend an appointment at Indian Consulate, in Brisbane. However, Singh is left with no choice but to go back and reschedule his appointment to get his young child's Overseas Citizen of Indian card issues sorted.
“These thugs should not be allowed to dictate how we live our life in Australia," Singh said.
“They are threatening us when we visit Gurughar (Gurudwara) now these Khalistan supporters are entering into our daily life for worse.”
“Queensland government and police need to deal with the full force of the law as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said a few days back,” Singh added.
"Australia won't tolerate any extreme actions and attacks that took place in religious buildings, and there is no place for such action against Hindu temples," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said while addressing a press conference in New Delhi on March 11.