One Nation’s candidate for Kororoit, Seva Melnikov, has visited Hindu temples in Melbourne’s west, offering prayers and thanking community members for their welcome ahead of the Victorian election.
Melnikov shared photographs from visits to Murugan Temple and Swaminarayan Temple in Deanside and Rockbank, showing him participating in religious rituals and greeting a religious representative.
“Thank you to Murugan Temple and Swaminarayan Temple (Deanside and Rockbank) for giving me your blessings for the upcoming state election in the Kororoit electorate,” he wrote.
“And a special thank you to my friend Manu Sharma for all of his help in facilitating the above.”
Hindu Victorian Manu Sharma told The Australia Today, “It was good to see Seva visit our temples, participate in the prayers and take an interest in our traditions.”
“Meeting people face to face gives everyone an opportunity to ask questions and understand each other.”
The visits come amid debate about One Nation’s call for a “monocultural” Australia and what that would mean for communities maintaining their religious and cultural traditions.
Indian Victorian community member who doesn’t want her name to be published told The Australia Today,
“I was pleasantly surprised by his visit, given the debate around One Nation and multiculturalism. Welcoming a candidate to our temple gives us a chance to discuss our concerns, but it does not automatically mean political support.”
Melnikov has also promoted a Diwali food donation drive encouraging people to contribute groceries and household essentials to help those struggling to put food on the table.
The campaign poster names International Idol Moksha Sewa and advertises a collection period from 19 October to 16 November 2026, with Manu listed as the contact.
Requested donations include rice, flour, pasta, lentils, canned food, long-life milk, tea, coffee, toiletries and cleaning products.
“Let’s share the light of Diwali by sharing what we have,” the poster says.
The initiative links Diwali celebrations with community service, asking families to consider people facing hardship while celebrating the festival of lights.
The candidate’s temple visits sit alongside a broader dispute over One Nation’s approach to cultural diversity.
Party leader Pauline Hanson’s call to end multiculturalism has attracted criticism from academics and political opponents. University of Melbourne Associate Professor Clayton Chin described the party’s vision of a monocultural Australia as “unworkable and exclusionary”.
Hanson has rejected interpretations that her position requires Australians to abandon their different cultural backgrounds. Defending her comments in June, she compared her vision to the Socceroos, with people from different backgrounds representing Australia under shared rules.
Melnikov’s own story includes migrating to Australia as a child.
According to his official candidate biography, he was born in the former Soviet Union, in what is now Ukraine, and arrived in Australia with his parents at the age of six without speaking English.
He later studied psychology and philosophy at Monash University and now works in cybersecurity. His biography describes his candidacy as an opportunity to give back to the country that offered his family a fresh start.
Melnikov thanked the temples for their blessings, but his statement did not announce a political endorsement from either institution.
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