Did someone get handles off a different mower and bolt them to the side?
I would say after years of the nasty single bolt top mounted handles being an obvious design flaw, Victa considered them a successful design in planned obsolescence and stuck by it.
No need for it now with these B&S engines claiming buyers don't have to ever change the oil! What a selling point for your typical Australian domestic mower buyer.

Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!