Jacinta Nampijinpa Price has doubled down on her decision not to apologise for her inflammatory comments about Labor allegedly ‘importing’ Indian voters, as the ongoing fallout threatens to tear apart the Coalition.
Senator Price faced backlash last week after accusing Labor of prioritising Indian migrants to help boost its vote.
The comments prompted Liberal Party numbers man Alex Hawke to ask her to clarify her comments, with their spat spilling into the public domain after Senator Price subsequently accused him of ‘cowardly and inappropriate conduct’ towards her staff.
Several senior Coalition figures have called on Senator Price to apologise but she has so far remained firm.
Now, she has effectively doubled down by re-sharing a lengthy post written by conservative political commentator Rukshan Fernando.
‘Senator Jacinta Price’s comments about Indian Australians were not racist in any way, and she should not apologise to anyone,’ Mr Fernando wrote.
‘Her observations about Australia’s changing demographics are grounded in real world observations and, importantly, data.
‘The overreaction to her remarks about Labor essentially importing Indian voters is evident in the obsessive demands for an apology to appease Indian Australians from the left, the mainstream media, and some so called conservatives.’
Senator Price faced backlash last week after accusing Labor of prioritising Indian migrants to help boost its vote. Now, she has effectively doubled down by re-sharing a lengthy post written by conservative political commentator Rukshan Fernando where he claims her comments were ‘not racist’
It comes after several senior Coalition figures have called on Senator Price to apologise, as the fallout continues
He called for a ‘broader discussion of the topic’, claiming Labor was attractive to Indian-Australians because of the ‘allure of victimhood offered’ by the party.
‘I say all of this of course as an Australian with subcontinental heritage, I believe Senator Jacinta Price did a great service for Australia by opposing Labor and Albanese’s push for racial apartheid during the Voice debate,’ Mr Fernando, who was born in Sri Lanka, added.
Senator Price shared his comments and thanked him, effectively endorsing what he had written and reiterating her decision not to apologise.
‘You are an Aussie that fights for our values and freedoms and I am grateful for your support and common sense on current issues. One Australia for us all,’ she wrote.
More to come.
