January 31, 2004
Source: BBC News
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3448239.stm
On January 31, 2004 the BBC News reported, "Several hundred Sikhs from across Europe have protested in Paris against a proposed law which would ban religious symbols from French schools. France's Sikh community of about 6,000 is outraged that they were not consulted when the law was drawn up...Some 2-3,000 Sikhs, the men all in turbans, marched from the Place de la Republique, the starting point for Paris street protests for the last century. They came from all over Europe, with a big contingent from the UK. A Sikh member of the Indian parliament flew in specially to show his solidarity."