The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has triggered a racism row after using the name “Mr Singh” in a social media campaign targeting undocumented immigrant truck drivers, with Sikh and Indian-American groups accusing the Trump administration of racial profiling. After facing widespread backlash, the DHS has since removed the controversial post.The poster, shared from the DHS’ official X account, carried the message: “America for Americans. Get off our roads; you don’t know how to drive, Mr Singh.” It also urged undocumented immigrants to “self-deport” or “find out”.The AI-generated graphic, styled as a parody of the ‘Transformers’ franchise, depicts a DHS-branded Transformer confronting a brown-skinned, bearded man wearing a head covering. Another graphic from the campaign is titled “Transformers: Age of Deportations”.The campaign also included a video naming several truck drivers, including Harjinder Singh, Rajinder Kumar, Bekzhan Beishekeev, Akhror Bozorov and Jasveer Singh, while urging action against immigrant commercial drivers. The DHS also asked people to report “illegal aliens on American roads”.Deeply offensive: BJPIn a statement addressed to US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor, BJP spokesperson RP Singh termed “deeply offensive” the use of Sikh identity and the surname “Singh” in the poster. He reminded the US of the Sikh community’s contribution by invoking Dr Narinder Singh Kapany, the pioneer of fibre optics; Dalip Singh Saund, the first Sikh elected to the US Congress; and Bhagat Singh Thind, the Sikh US Army soldier who fought for citizenship and religious freedom.US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi criticised the post, saying the government should never use its power to “demonise people” or suggest that their faith, heritage or identity means they do not belong in the US.“More than 1,60,000 people in the United States share the surname Singh,” he said, adding that demonising the name “fuels xenophobia and casts suspicion on an entire community”.“Sikh and South Asian Americans are as American as anyone. This is our country and our home, and there should be no room for hate here,” Krishnamoorthi said.The Hindu American Foundation accused the DHS of “anti-India profiling”, while the Sikh Coalition and other advocacy groups condemned the campaign as discriminatory and called for accountability. Sikh advocacy groups have also pointed to the community’s significant presence in the US trucking industry, with estimates that Sikhs account for about 20 per cent of the country’s truck drivers.The campaign is part of the Trump administration’s wider crackdown on illegal immigration and its push against immigrant commercial drivers. The administration has been highlighting fatal crashes involving immigrant truck drivers, while US authorities have stepped up scrutiny of commercial driving licences and undocumented drivers.The controversy has also drawn attention because the post appeared just ahead of the September 11 anniversary, with Sikh organisations warning against racial stereotyping of the community.