JALANDHAR: The US was convinced of the Congress government’s hand in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and termed it as "opportunism" and "hatred" of the government against Sikhs. The US also believed that the BJP leadership didn’t have the courage to ask chief minister Narendra Modi to step down (following the 2002 Gujarat riots) even after PM Manmohan Singh apologised to the Sikhs after the filing of the Nanavati Commission report. WikiLeaks expose — that revealed a cable sent from the US Embassy in August 2005 soon after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s apology to Sikhs following the Nanavati Commission report — said, "The PM’s singular act of political courage stands in exquisite contrast to the opportunism and hatred directed by senior GoI officials against Sikhs in 1984."WikiLeaks released this cable on April 22 this year.It said PM Manmohan Singh’s apology to Sikhs was "for the government’s involvement in the 1984 riots", praised him for forcing the resignation of a minister with long ties to the Gandhi family and indicated that Sikhs died due to pogroms directed by Congress office-bearers.The US believed that the BJP leadership didn’t have the power to ask Modi to step down following the 2002 Gujarat riots even after Singh apologised for the riots and acted against Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler following the report.The cable, signed by "Blake" (Robert O Blake, deputy chief of mission at US embassy between 2003 and 2006), raised doubts over Modi’s political career in the section marked "Should Modi Be Worried?" but goes on to say "BJP is in such disarray that the central decision makers don’t have the power to force Modi to step down, and therefore he will remain at the helm of Gujarat"."The swift action of the Congress leadership in sacrificing Tytler and Sajjan Kumar has raised questions about the fate of Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi if a similar commission investigating the 2002 Gujarat riots finds his government at fault," the cable said.While the cable praises Singh, calling his act a sign of "political courage", "momentous" and "almost Gandhian", it exposes the weakness within BJP. "The speed with which Congress forced two of the party’s senior leaders to step down and released an apology to the nation, pre-empted BJP and Left party criticism, leaving the Opposition with little ammunition with which to attack the UPA," the cable said."The Press quoted a senior BJP MP as saying, the government has not only blunted the edge of our campaign, it has put a lid on it," the cable said.