Washington: A US Department of Homeland Security advertisement asking “Mr Singh” to self-deport has sparked criticism from advocacy groups, which called the campaign racist, discriminatory and anti-American.

The DHS used an AI-generated image on X for its campaign against unlicensed commercial drivers. The image showed a brown-bearded man with the message: “Get off our roads, you don't know how to drive Mr Singh.”

Another post featured Optimus Prime, the main character from the Transformers franchise, wearing a DHS patch and confronting the man with the message: “Self-deport or find out.”

A related video showed Megatron, the franchise’s main antagonist, seeking the release of truck drivers Harjinder Singh, Rajinder Kumar, Bekzhan Beishekeev, Akhror Bozorov and Jasveer Singh. The drivers were involved in road accidents and other crimes, the DHS said.

“If you approach this nation with hostile intent, know this. We will defend ourselves. We will defend Americanism. We will defend our home,” the DHS said in a post on X.

The reference to “Mr Singh” drew criticism from the Hindu American Foundation and the Sikh Coalition.

“Singhs are Hindu, they are Sikhs, they are American and they drive. Racist, un-American, anti-Indian profiling/trolling by @DHSgov should shock our nation's collective conscience,” the Hindu American Foundation said.

“This is a discriminatory post by a federal agency that is far beyond political messaging, and we welcome an investigation,” it said, tagging Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K Dhillon and FBI Director Kash Patel.

The Coalition of Hindus of North America said: “Enforce the law. Do not caricature a people. @DHSgov Dangerous drivers come from all backgrounds, ethnicities, faiths and last names.”

“Singling out SOME last names does nothing for safe streets, but it does endanger the safety of hundreds of thousands of Americans with names like Singh and Kumar,” the group said.

The Sikh Coalition said: “Twenty-five years after 9/11, Sikhs are still being targeted and profiled for how we look.”

“Millions of Sikhs in the United States have the last name Singh, which means lion. We remain fearless in identifying as Sikhs - even when our government portrays us as enemies,” it said.

Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi also condemned the post.

“Our government should never use its power to demonise people or suggest that their faith, heritage, or identity means they do not belong here,” he said.

“More than 160,000 people in the United States share the surname Singh. When the government demonises a name carried by so many Sikh families, it fuels xenophobia and casts suspicion on an entire community,” Krishnamoorthi said.

The controversy comes as the DHS promotes its CBP Home programme, which allows eligible undocumented migrants to register their intention to leave the US voluntarily.

Those who register for self-deportation can receive travel assistance and an exit bonus of USD 2,600, according to the DHS.