Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to receive a grand welcome during his visit to Australia, but an anti-immigration group has also planned a protest outside Melbourne's Marvel Stadium on Thursday during the 'Melbourne Meets Modi' community event. Australia is home to a large Indian diaspora, with people of Indian origin now accounting for more than 5 per cent of the country's population.
Modi is scheduled to hold talks with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on expanding strategic and economic cooperation. The two leaders will meet in Melbourne for the Australia–India Annual Leaders' Summit.
According to an AFP report, a "protest against Indian migration to Australia" has been planned to coincide with Modi's visit to Melbourne. The demonstration is expected to take place during the 'Melbourne Meets Modi' event at Marvel Stadium, where tens of thousands of members of Australia's Indian community are expected to gather to welcome the Prime Minister.
The protest is reportedly being organised by an anti-immigration group that has previously targeted Indian migrants.
Australia-based publication The Indian Sun reported that social media accounts associated with the anti-mass migration movement "March for Australia" have been mobilising supporters for Thursday's demonstration. According to the publication, promotional material circulating online calls on participants to gather outside the Department of Home Affairs office at 808 Bourke Street in Melbourne's Docklands before marching towards Marvel Stadium.
The Indian Sun said it had verified the authenticity of the online posts but could not independently confirm the expected turnout or whether Victoria Police had been formally notified about the protest.
Among the accounts promoting the demonstration is the verified X handle Aus Pill (@aus_pill), which The Indian Sun linked to supporters of the March for Australia movement.
In a post announcing the protest, Aus Pill claimed that Australian leaders were hosting Prime Minister Narendra Modi while pursuing closer ties with India through migration and engagement with the Indian diaspora. The account argued that Australia should reject further mass immigration.
"The vast majority of those attending the Marvel Stadium rally will be supporters of Narendra Modi and his far right BJP party, they may not like us opposing them but this is our continent. We vow to be peaceful, but loud," the account posted.
Responding to Aus Pill's post, verified X user BW Jackson, who identifies himself as a "national conservationist", urged Australians to oppose what he described as foreign influence in domestic politics.
"Tomorrow a foreign leader is effectively holding a political rally in Melbourne to demonstrate the growing power of his diaspora in our country," Jackson wrote. "Australians should push back against this so that our leaders know that we oppose this foreign influence on our politics."
Group had previously targeted Indian migrants
The planned protest comes less than a year after the "March for Australia" movement organised anti-immigration rallies across several Australian cities that prominently singled out Indian migrants.
During those demonstrations in August last year, campaign material highlighted the rapid increase in Australia's Indian-born population and argued that immigration was changing the country's demographic composition.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, cited in multiple reports at the time, around 8,45,800 Indian-born residents were living in Australia in 2023, making them one of the country's largest overseas-born communities. More recent official estimates place the Indian-born population at nearly one million, making it Australia's second-largest migrant community after those born in England.
The rallies drew criticism from across Australia's political spectrum.
Australian ministers condemned the demonstrations as divisive and accused organisers of promoting hatred, while several politicians expressed concern over anti-Indian rhetoric. Authorities also reported the presence of neo-Nazi figures at some of the protests, particularly in Melbourne, where clashes broke out between demonstrators and counter-protesters. Several people were arrested during the unrest.
March for Australia has denied having links with extremist organisations, describing itself as a grassroots movement advocating lower immigration levels.
Why Modi's Australia visit is significant
The planned protest comes against the backdrop of one of the most significant India-Australia engagements in recent years. This marks Modi's third visit to Australia in the past decade.
His discussions with Albanese are expected to focus on strengthening cooperation in defence, critical minerals, trade and energy security.
According to AFP, securing supplies of critical minerals such as lithium and expanding cooperation in uranium are expected to be key topics during the talks. Australia possesses some of the world's largest reserves of lithium and uranium, resources that are increasingly important for India's clean energy goals and long-term nuclear energy expansion.
India and Australia have significantly deepened bilateral ties over the past decade, driven in part by shared concerns over China's growing strategic influence in the Indo-Pacific and cooperation through the Quad grouping alongside the United States and Japan.
The visit will also include the Australia–India Annual Leaders' Summit, a business reception focused on the bilateral economic roadmap, meetings with Australian leaders and interactions with the Indian community.
During his previous visit to Australia in 2023, Modi addressed around 20,000 members of the Indian diaspora in Sydney, where Albanese famously referred to him as "the Boss" while praising his popularity among the community.
This year's Melbourne event is expected to attract an even larger gathering.
