A dispute over the management of the key business group for the area has split the community and forced the state government to investigate allegations that government money provided to the group was used to pay an employee of the former president’s own business.
Sanjay Deshwal (left) was the president of the Little India Harris Park Business Association.
The Little India Harris Park Business Association, one of western Sydney’s most influential multicultural groups, has been praised by the state government as a nighttime trading success story for its role in helping shape Harris Park as a dining experience destination, buzzing with street food vendors and late-night eats.
But in the past six months, chaos has reigned in the association. Sanjay Deshwal, a visa and migration agent who has become the face of Little India in mainstream media, was dumped as president at the group’s August annual general meeting. He was replaced by board member Nitin Setia, who runs a local restaurant.
At the meeting, according to minutes seen by the Herald, Nitin reported allegations of “major issues” with the association’s “financial matters, irregularities in payments and kickback in supplier invoicing”.
Bank statements obtained by this masthead also show more than $63,000 was withdrawn from the association’s accounts in mostly monthly deductions marked “salary” for a member of the association, who was previously an employee for Deshwal’s migration agency, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Little India has emerged as a highly popular nightlife precinct, but its local business association is in dispute.
The Office of the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner Michael Rodrigues, confirmed he is investigating the use of grant money provided to the organisation as part of its Uptown Grant Program, which provides funding for local business communities to create “unique going-out destinations”. The association had received at least $190,000 in funding from the body.
Fair Trading NSW, which regulates associations, has placed a note on the group’s record marking it as “in dispute”. A spokesperson said it did so following representations “from two separate parties”, and did so “to ensure third parties are aware there is more than one party purporting to be responsible for the management of the association’s affairs”.
The allegations have forced a split in the organisation. Deshwal, who has garnered significant influence over local politics in the area, continues to claim to be the genuine president of the body. But the website of the Little India Harris Park Business Association now redirects to another organisation: the Little India Harris Park Business Precinct.
