You don’t expect One Nation candidates to open with a Punjabi poem. But then again, you don’t expect them to have been born in a village in Amritsar either. Kuljeet Kaur Robinson is the kind of political wildcard who doesn’t quite fit the frame—and that might be exactly the point.
Living in Warragul, Victoria, and running in the electorate of Monash, Kuljeet is standing for Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party. The electorate she’s contesting—Monash—is no quiet seat. Spread across Gippsland, it includes towns like Warragul, Moe, Wonthaggi and Leongatha. It’s currently held by Russell Broadbent, a long-time Liberal who’s now running as an independent after losing preselection. Labor is fielding Tully Fletcher, the Liberals have endorsed Mary Aldred, and there’s also a Climate 200-backed independent in the mix. It’s a crowded field, with no obvious front-runner—just shifting loyalties, local histories, and a growing appetite for alternatives.
She’s a psychiatric nurse by profession, a mother of three, and a woman who describes herself as someone who “doesn’t stay quiet”. Her statement blends local grit with mainstream populism—there’s talk of reducing electricity bills and scrapping beer taxes, but also mental health care and Punjabi poetry. It’s a strange mix. Then again, it reflects the moment we’re in.
Kuljeet’s message is local, her identity proudly Punjabi, and her platform lifted straight from One Nation’s national playbook. There are promises to cut fuel excise and raise the tax-free threshold, to support local farmers by banning foreign ownership of farmland, and to increase Medicare rebates while going hard on bulk billing fraud. The party’s tone may have mellowed around Indian Australians in recent years, but its broad strokes remain unchanged: Australia first, cut the waste, keep it local.
It’s easy to be cynical about such pairings. But Kuljeet isn’t walking into this naïvely. She’s a seasoned healthcare professional who’s worked in psychiatric services—someone who has seen both quiet suffering and public failure. Her decision to run seems less about grandstanding and more about the lived experience of a system that’s too often slow, bureaucratic, or invisible.
What remains to be seen is how the community reads this move. On the one hand, it’s a break from the script—a woman with deep cultural roots stepping into a party many migrants still view with caution. On the other, it reflects a broader political truth that’s becoming harder to ignore: people are tired of being spoken at. They want to be heard. And if that means choosing candidates who don’t come from the usual camps, so be it.
Kuljeet says she wants to fight for affordable housing and support small businesses. She wants to take everyday concerns to Canberra, not culture wars. The poetry comes in between.
What she represents is a political moment where cultural identity and party affiliation no longer sit in neat boxes. Where voters look beyond party lines and candidates show up from places you least expect. Whether she wins or not is beside the point. Her campaign signals something many mainstream parties still haven’t quite grasped: the old assumptions are falling apart.
And yes, she really is writing poetry in Punjabi while campaigning for One Nation.
If you’re a federal candidate with a message for the Indian Australian community, we’d love to hear from you. Share your statement with us for editorial consideration.
Support independent community journalism. Support The Indian Sun.
Follow The Indian Sun on X | Instagram | Facebook
Support Independent Community Journalism
Dear Reader,The Indian Sun exists for one reason: to tell stories that might otherwise go unheard.
We report on local councils, state politics, small businesses and cultural festivals. We focus on the Indian diaspora and the wider multicultural community with care, balance and accountability. We publish in print and online, send regular newsletters and produce video content. We also run media training programs to help community organisations share their own stories.
We operate independently.
Community journalism does not have the backing of large media corporations. Advertising revenue fluctuates. Platform algorithms change. Costs continue to rise. Yet the need for credible, grounded reporting in a multicultural Australia has never been greater.
When you support The Indian Sun, you support:
• Independent reporting on issues affecting migrant communities
• Coverage of local and state decisions that shape daily life
• A platform for small businesses and community groups
• Media training that builds skills within the community
• Journalism accountable to readers
We cannot cover everything, but we work to cover what matters.
If you value thoughtful reporting that reflects Australia’s diversity, we invite you to contribute. Every donation helps us maintain the quality and consistency of our work.
Please consider making a contribution today.
Thank you for your support.
The Indian Sun Team
