With Prime Minister Narendra Modi all set to inaugurate the statue of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi during his visit, Paras Ram Punj, main donor of the installation, lauded the former's vision and said they always knew he would become a leader.
"We are the main donor for the installation and my son-in-law supplied the granite and this is an honour that we are able to help our contribution as Indians to Australia. When he came here, we saw vision in his eyes and knew he will become a leader," Punj said.
Punj also recalled the time when Prime Minister Modi had visited his house in 2001.
"I was asked to receive him at the airport in the evening and he accepted our invitation to visit our home. He joyously told us that he wanted home cooked food. My wife cooked the food herself and he enjoyed it," Punj said.
"During our discussions, he said that the Indian community must build either a road or a statue of Mahatma Gandhi here. This message stuck us and this year it's the ideal opportunity to get it unveiled. We asked the council for the land and tomorrow the statue will be unveiled," he added.
Punj's wife also recalled the time when Prime Minister Modi savoured the food cooked by her.
"I made extremely simple food for him. He said I want only simple home cooked food. He is very humble and we loved everything about him," she said.
Punj's son Bhoomipla expressed hope that India would become a superpower under Prime Minister Modi's leadership.
"We are so excited that he has come to Australia, but we are more excited for what he's doing to India today. This has really changed the vision and focus. We would actually love to go back to India now. India is going to be a superpower," he said.