As the federal election campaign enters its last leg, political parties have embarked on an election spending spree to woo migrant communities.
After Liberal Party’s pledge specifically to the Indian community earlier this week, now Labor has announced it will provide $2.5 million to "the South Asian community" if elected to power on May 18.
Leaving out the specifics, Tony Burke, Shadow Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs told SBS Punjabi that the allocated sum is "principally" for the Indian community.
"The funding is principally for the Indian community but we have left room for partnerships," said Mr Burke.
In a press statement, the Labor Party stated that the funds will go towards building new facilities or updating existing ones for the use of the members of the community.
“The South Asian community is a significant and growing community in Australia. This funding will mean they can build new facilities or modernise existing ones,” read the statement.
The party said it will consult with the community to finalise the process.
Earlier on Sunday, the Liberal Party had pledged the exact same amount but they had clearly specified that the promised funds would go towards the construction of an Indian Community Centre in Victoria.
The announcement was made by Alan Tudge, the Federal Minister for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population at a community event in the southeastern suburb of Dandenong in Melbourne over the weekend.
“Should the Morrison government be re-elected we would provide $2.5 million to the Indian community to build an Indian Community Centre right here in Victoria,” Mr Tudge had said while making the announcement.
Whilst the Indian community has largely welcomed the promises made by both the parties, Vasan Srinivasan, the Chair of the Australian Indian Community Charitable Trust, however, told SBS Punjabi that it is pertinent to point out that the Labor Party has not provided any specifics.
"We're happy with the announcement, but at this stage it is not clear where the money is going, to which charity, to which community group because South Asian community as you know is huge and diverse," said Mr Srinivasan.
