I can't believe it's not News! - Vol. 2

India has Nothing to do with Sanjaya, says Embassy
Washington DC, April 6.

The Indian Embassy in Washington today issued a statement denying all links between India and allegedly Indian-American American Idol contestant Sanjaya Malakar. "All references to India as the "country of Sanjaya" are absolutely wrong. Sanjaya Malakar has never been an Indian citizen, and we are now planning to strip him of his Person of Indian Origin (PIO) status" said Ambassador Ronen Sen while speaking to reporters.

The Indian Foreign Ministry has spent the past week trying to manage the fallout from Sanjaya's entry into the top 9 of the competition. On Wednesday, the Indian Consulate in New York took out a full page ad in the New York Times, detailing, among other things the fact that most Indians can sing quite well and do not, in fact, sport outlandish hairstyles. Among other things, Indian diplomats have tried to highlight Malakar's non-Indian ancestry in an attempt to dissociate him from the country. "Sanjaya is half Italian-American", said Ambassador Sen. "Its that side of the family that's responsible for his weirdness. This is more Italy's fault than India's." (Related article: Congress workers demand Sen's resignation)

Mr. Malakar has declined to comment so far, but is believed to be planning to hold a press conference to respond to the Ambassador's statement in front of the Indian Embassy in Washington tomorrow.