Australian High Commissioner Philip Green stated that his country takes India's concerns about Khalistan seriously and respects its territorial integrity, while clarifying that peaceful protest is allowed but criminal activity will not be tolerated.
High Commissioner of Australia to India, Philip Green, said that his country takes Indian interests seriously and have taken note of its concerns regarding Khalistanis in their country. Green, in a conversation with ANI, said that Australia respects the territorial integrity of India as it is. "We have certainly taken note. Our multicultural, intelligence, police, and foreign policy authorities meet frequently and engage on this. We take Indian interests seriously. Let me be very clear: Australia believes in the territorial integrity of India as it is. We have no truck with irredentist elements," he said.
Green told ANI that Australia allows peaceful protest, but will not allow any criminal activity. "However, I would say that one of the elements of our democracy is the right to peaceful protest. People are entitled to hold and make known their views and demonstrate peacefully within the law. That will continue to be allowed, but what won't be allowed is any criminal activity," he said.
Khalistan Referendum in Sydney
On June 10, 2023, Australia's Sikh and Hindu communities flared as a contentious vote was designed to build political support for an independent Sikh state in India, as per ABC News. Some Sikh community members gathered at a construction site in Minchinbury in Sydney's western suburbs on Sunday to hold the latest "referendum" in favour of establishing a new state called Khalistan in India's Punjab region, as per the report.
Deportations 'Isolated Cases'
When asked about recent deportations of Indians from Australia, Green said that these were isolated cases, as over 4,50,000 Indians visited the country last year. "These are isolated cases. There were 450,000 Indians who went to Australia for tourism last year and another 50,000 who went as students. What you're talking about is a handful of people. We have a visa system that requires people to depart Australia at the end of their visa, and we will always stick by that," he said.
Punjab Government delegation on April 30 received Indian Nationals deported from Australia at Delhi airport. As per Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, 15 Indians are being deported from Australia. Eleven of them were Punjabi. One of them is a woman, and ten are boys. (ANI)
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