Source: Independent Press Association-NY
http://www.indypressny.org/article.php3?ArticleID=1457
On May 28, 2004 the Independent Press Association-NY ran an Indian Express article that reported, "For the Sikh community, the joy of Baisakhi (the Sikh New Year) has doubled with the appointment of Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister of India. Accompanying the traditional beats of the dhol and speeches at the Indian Consulate, loud whoops of joy and thundering applause resounded after each speaker lauded India’s rich democratic traditions, which facilitated the appointment of India’s first-ever Sikh prime minister...Singh’s assuming office is the best news ever received by the Sikh community here [in the United States], where Sikhs have been victims of hate crimes, mistaken as followers of Osama bin Laden, and even radical Islamists...Now, with Manmohan Singh – the new poster boy for the Sikh community – they can be assured of widespread global media attention and curiosity. Maninder Singh Seth, of Glencove Gurdwara, hit the nail on the head. Speaking in chaste Punjabi, he said: 'It would have been impossible to be the Prime Minister of India with Sikhs being the minority. But Manmohan Singh was elected because of his hard work and his character. We want the world to know that we are Manmohan Singh followers, not Osama bin Laden’s.'"