India distances itself from official accused of plot to kill Sikh activist on US soil

Key PointsAn Indian government official has been accused of plotting to kill a Sikh activist in the US.US officials have named the target as Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.Allegations a “matter of concern”, India says.

An Indian government official directed an unsuccessful plot to assassinate a Sikh activist on US soil, the US Justice Department says, in announcing charges against a man accused of orchestrating the attempted murder.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan said Nikhil Gupta, 52, worked with the Indian government employee, whose responsibilities included security and intelligence, on the plot to assassinate the New York City resident who advocated for a sovereign Sikh state in northern India.

Responding on Thursday, India expressed concern about one of its government officials being linked to the plot, from which it dissociated itself, as being against government policy.

Prosecutors did not name the Indian official or the target, although they did describe the latter as a US citizen of Indian origin. US officials have named him as Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a dual citizen of the United States and Canada. Gupta was arrested by Czech authorities in June and is awaiting extradition.

News of the incident comes two months after Canada said there were “credible”

, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in a Vancouver suburb, a contention India has rejected.

On Wednesday, Damian Williams, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, said: “The defendant conspired from India to assassinate, right here in New York City, a US citizen of Indian origin who has publicly advocated for the establishment of a sovereign state for Sikhs.”

The Indian official is described in the related indictment as a “senior field officer” with responsibilities in “security management” and “intelligence” employed by the Indian government who “directed the plot from India”.

The charges come after a senior Biden administration official said last week that US authorities had thwarted a plot to kill a Sikh activist in the United States and warned India over concerns the government in New Delhi was involved.

US President Joe Biden told CIA director Bill Burns to contact his Indian counterpart, then travel to India to deliver a message that “we will not tolerate such activities and that we expect those responsible to be held fully accountable,” a senior US official said Wednesday.

Biden also raised the issue with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the G20 summit, where he “emphasized the seriousness of this issue and the potential repercussions for our bilateral relationship were similar threats to persist,” the official said.

It was a “matter of concern” that an Indian government official was linked to the plot, India’s foreign ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said on Thursday, adding, “this is also contrary to government policy”.

The issue is highly delicate for both India and the Biden administration as they try to build closer ties in the face of an ascendant

On Wednesday, India had said it would formally investigate the concerns aired by the US, and take “necessary follow-up action” on the findings of a panel set up on 18 November.

According to US prosecutors, the Indian official recruited Gupta in May 2023 to orchestrate the assassination.

Gupta had previously told the official he had been involved with trafficking drugs and weapons, prosecutors said. Gupta then contacted someone he believed was a criminal associate for help hiring a hit man, but that associate was actually a Drug Enforcement Administration undercover agent.

The day after Nijjar was killed, Gupta wrote to the undercover DEA agent saying Nijjar “was also the target” and “we have so many targets”, prosecutors said.

Gupta faces two counts of murder-for-hire and murder-for-hire conspiracy. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years if convicted.

India has complained about the presence of Sikh separatist groups overseas, including Canada and the United States.

The movement is considered a security threat by India, although the cause now has hardly any support within the country, having been crushed in the 1990s.

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