A major party candidate campaigning at op shops against the cost-of-living crisis owns a $500,000 Lamborghini and does not cook at home because it’s too time consuming.
Mira D’Silva, the Liberal Party’s candidate for Lalor in Melbourne‘s west, has campaigned on Facebook about how difficult it is becoming for voters to cope with high inflation.
‘In the coming months, you as an Australian will have a choice to make,’ she said in March.
‘A choice for eased cost of living, a choice for a safer community, a choice for supporting small business and finally, a choice for building a stronger economy.’
This month, Ms D’Silva visited a Salvation Army op shop selling secondhand clothes to make the point about how tough it is financially for many people.
‘I visited the Salvation Army earlier this week, and had the chance to speak with some incredible people who came in seeking support. Their stories were honest and heartfelt — many spoke about how much harder life has become,’ she said.
‘The rising cost of living, lack of proper infrastructure, the pressure on our schools and education system falling behind global standards, and the ever-increasing price of groceries — these are real challenges faced daily by families in our community.’
Life apparently isn’t quite as tough for Ms D’Silva and her husband Pani Kersarla, who own a $500,000 Lamborghini Huracan and a Tesla Model X – both with personalised plates.
A candidate campaigning on the cost-of-living crisis at Salvos stores (above) owns a $500,000 Lamborghini and doesn’t cook at home because it’s too time consuming
Life apparently isn’t quite as tough for Mira D’Silva and her husband Pani Kersarla, who own a $500,000 Lamborghini Huracan and a Tesla Model X (pictured)
The couple co-founded IT and cybersecurity group Delivery Centric in Melbourne after moving from India in 2004, and have ANZ, the Commonwealth Bank, NAB, Telstra and Google as their customers.
The successful tech entrepreneurs featured in a magazine profile in 2018 by Melbourne writer Doug Hendrie who noted they had just bought a black, Italian sports car.
‘To reward themselves for their success, Mira and Pani have just bought a Lamborghini,’ his ‘Indian Melbourne’ profile said.
Her husband Mr Kersarla posted an image of their Lamborghini on Instagram in February last year.
The couple are accustomed to domestic help and wanted the same when they came to Australia.
‘In India, Mira and her husband – who come from money – had drivers, domestic help, cooks. It is no surprise that they’ve recreated that, in a new form,’ the article said.
Ms D’Silva is quoted is saying she never cooked at home and preferred to get daily home-style meals delivered – known as ‘tiffin services’.
‘My husband is very fond of outsourcing – and I believe the best person for the job should do it. So I don’t cook at home – I get tiffin services,’ she told Hendrie.
The tech entrepreneurs featured in a magazine profile in 2018 by Melbourne writer Doug Hendrie who noted they had just bought a new Lamborghini (pictured in a 2024 Instagram post)
‘It wasn’t that we can’t do the [domestic] work, it’s just it is too time consuming.
‘I could be sitting at home taking off cobwebs, but then I wouldn’t be doing my work where I can feed other people.’
The couple have also posed in pictures together with their Tesla Model X, with distinctive falcon-wing doors.
But despite that, Ms D’Silva on Tuesday posted a campaign video on YouTube showing her filling up a decade-old Toyota Corolla hatch.
‘From rising crime to the spiralling cost of living, Labor has neglected the west,’ she said.
Despite being a migrant herself – moving from India to Australia in 2004 – Ms D’Silva has slammed Labor for presiding over record-high immigration levels.
‘Labor’s solution to staying in power? Mass migration over real representation,’ she said on her Mira For Lalor X account that has since been deleted.
Her Facebook page, however, is full of campaign images of her courting the Indian vote.
Despite being a migrant herself, Ms D’Silva has slammed Labor for presiding over record-high immigration levels
In another Facebook post, she appears with former Liberal prime minister John Howard, recalling how he was in charge when she moved to Australia two decades ago
In another post from March, also deleted, Ms D’Silva suggests Mr Albanese had put Australia’s security at risk by meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in 2023 to offer him Australian Bushmaster vehicles
While she is Catholic, she is seen in the images wearing a sari to connect with Hindu voters.
In another Facebook post from early April, she appears with former Liberal prime minister John Howard.
‘When I arrived in Australia 20 years ago, John Howard was leading the nation,’ she said.
‘As I searched for job opportunities, I often listened to him on TV, articulating his vision for Australia – a moment that first sparked my interest in the Liberal Party.
‘Today, we reflected on his policies, particularly the skilled migration policy.’
As a candidate, she had another controversial social media post – since deleted from X – which suggested Australia’s $368billion commitment to AUKUS was apparently a failure.
‘Australia foots the bill while US and UK take submarines,’ she said.
‘AUKUS is a “fantasy” that will leave us defenceless.’
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese continued his Liberal predecessor Scott Morrison’s AUKUS submarine deal with the US and UK.
In another post from March, also deleted, Ms D’Silva suggests Mr Albanese had put Australia’s security at risk by meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in 2023 to offer him Australian Bushmaster vehicles.
‘Anthony Albanese’s reckless foreign policy dragging Australia into a dangerous conflict,’ she said, although her own party supports funding for the Ukraine war effort.
Ms D’Silva ran against former Labor leader Bill Shorten in Maribyrnong in 2022 and is now contesting former prime minister Julia Gillard’s old electorate of Lalor.
Daily Mail Australia contacted the Liberal Party for comment.