As Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his most recent tour to Australia, Australian towns sprang to life with energy and confidence. The Sikh diaspora in particular gave a warm welcome, demonstrating pride, unanimity, and the phrase “We are Indians and we all come under one banner”
The founder of the Australian-Indian Sports Educational & Cultural Society, Gurnam Singh, was one of the key individuals directing the greeting party. Singh, speaking for the Sikh community as a whole, emphasized their Indian identity and their rejection of dividing factors. He said, “We love Modi and reject disruptive Khalistani elements of US & Canada,” strongly uniting the Sikh population in Australia with their own country.
Mr. Singh said that this visit signaled an interesting turn in ties between Australia and India. “Up until this point, the relationship between India and Australia had only ever included cricket. But the free trade pact has now given India a bit more visibility,” he remarked. Singh’s comments are in line with those of many who, encouraged by the PM’s visit, think that the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) might result in a successful collaboration between the two countries.
The Sikh community, which makes up a sizable portion of Australia’s Indian diaspora, has contributed significantly to establishing bilateral ties and overcoming cultural divides. Their fervent welcome of Prime Minister Modi was a striking illustration of their pride in their Indian background and their readiness to take the initiative to improve ties between Australia and India.
Singh’s conviction that PM Modi’s visit gave the FTA life supports the importance of such diplomatic journeys. He said that Modi’s visit to Australia helped the “trade agreement actually become alive,” illustrating how direct involvement and global diplomacy can spur policymaking.
The celebration also emphasized the Sikh community’s distance from Khalistani forces, separatists who are predominantly found in the US and Canada and who demand an independent Sikh nation called Khalistan. Instead, the response from the Sikh diaspora revealed a general attitude of harmony under the guise of their Indian identity.
Given the global climate, this demonstration of solidarity and rejection of divisive views is very important. The emphasis of their relationship may be moving from a common love of cricket to a more comprehensive, strategic, and economic alliance as a result of PM Modi’s visit to Australia.
One thing became abundantly evident as a result of the event: the Indian diaspora, and in especially the Sikh community in Australia, look forward to a day when the relationship between the two countries goes beyond cricket and advances deeper economic, educational, and cultural integration.
