State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.
| Photo Credit: AP

The U.S. has said it is looking forward to the results of the Indian inquiry into the allegations that an Indian official was involved in an alleged plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil.

In November last year, U.S. federal prosecutors charged Indian national Nikhil Gupta of working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Pannun in New York. Pannun, wanted in India on terror charges, holds dual citizenship of the U.S. and Canada.

Gupta, who was arrested in the Czech Republic in June last year, was extradited to the U.S. on June 14.

“They (Indian officials) have announced that they are conducting an inquiry, and we will look forward to the results of that inquiry,” State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters at his daily news conference on Wednesday.

He was responding to a question on members of the Foreign Senate Foreign Relations Committee writing a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling for a strong diplomatic response on the Indian government’s involvement in an alleged assassination attempt on a U.S. citizen on U.S. soil.

Following the allegations, India appointed a high-level inquiry committee to look into the inputs provided by the U.S. on the plot.

Mr. Miller said, “We will respond to those members privately as we always do. I won’t speak to that here. But as pertains to the other issue, when this issue first arose, we made clear that we had raised it with the government of India and told them that we expected there to be a full investigation.”

During a virtual media briefing on Wednesday on his and U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s visit to India last week, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said, the U.S. has consistently pressed India for updates on the Indian investigation into the alleged foiled plot to kill Sikh separatist Pannun and made it clear that it seeks accountability in the case.

“We have had constructive dialogue with India on this topic and I would say that they have been responsive to our concerns,” he said.

“We’ve made clear that we seek accountability from the Government of India and we have consistently asked for updates on the Indian committee of inquiry’s investigations,” Campbell said.

“And I would just simply say that we raised this issue directly with the Indian government…at the most senior levels between our two sides,” he said.

He was replying to a question on whether the ‘murder-for-hire’ plot targeting Pannun was raised during meetings that he and Sullivan held with their Indian counterparts.

Responding to another question on the Lok Sabha elections in India, Miller said, “When it comes to the Indian elections, we have been quite clear on behalf of the United States government that we celebrate what was the largest exercise of democracy in the history of the world.” “It was an extraordinary achievement. And then when it comes to the outcome of the election, we obviously take no side. That’s a question for the people of India to decide,” Mr. Miller said.

New Delhi:

The government today said it has not received any consular access request from Nikhil Gupta, an Indian accused of being involved in a murder-for-hire plot against a Khalistani terrorist on American soil. “We are in touch with his family,” it added.

The 53-year-old was arrested and detained in the Czech Republic on June 30, 2023, at the request of the US government on charges of plotting with an Indian official to kill Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York. He was extradited to the US on June 14.

Mr Gupta was produced before a federal court in New York on Monday, where he pleaded not guilty, according to his lawyer Jeffrey Chabrowe.

India has designated Pannun a terrorist but dissociated itself from the plot. The government said late last year it was a “matter of concern” that an Indian government official was linked to the plot and that it would formally investigate concerns raised by the United States.

“This is a complex matter for both our countries,” Mr Gupta’s lawyer told PTI ahead of his client’s arraignment.

“It is extremely important that we refrain from rushing to conclusions so early in the process. Background and details will develop that may cast government allegations into an entirely new light,” he said.

“We will pursue his defence vigorously and ensure he receives full due process, regardless of outside pressures,” he added.

The murder-for-hire case carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, the US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York said in a press release.

Washington:

Indian national Nikhil Gupta, 53, accused of being involved in a murder-for-hire plot against a Khalistani terrorist on American soil, will now face justice in a US courtroom, Attorney General Merrick Garland has said, asserting that the country will not tolerate attempts to harm its citizens.

Gupta, 53, also known as Nick, was arrested and detained in the Czech Republic on June 30, 2023, at the request of the US government on charges of being involved in a plot to assassinate Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York. He was extradited to the US on June 14.

Gupta was produced before a federal court in New York on Monday, where he pleaded not guilty, according to his attorney, Jeffrey Chabrowe.

“This extradition makes clear that the Justice Department will not tolerate attempts to silence or harm American citizens,” Garland said on Monday.

“Nikhil Gupta will now face justice in an American courtroom for his involvement in an alleged plot, directed by an employee of the Indian government, to target and assassinate a US citizen for his support of the Sikh separatist movement in India,” he said.

Gupta is charged with murder-for-hire and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for each charge.

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said this murder-for-hire plot, allegedly orchestrated by an Indian government employee to kill a US citizen in New York City, was a brazen attempt to silence a political activist for exercising a quintessential American right — his freedom of speech.

“The extradition of the defendant is a vital step towards justice,” she said.

FBI Director Christopher Wray said the agency will not tolerate attempts by foreign nationals or anyone else to repress constitutionally-protected freedoms in the United States.

“We will continue to work with our partners at home and abroad to protect our citizens and these sacred rights,” he said.

According to court documents, last year, an Indian government employee (CC-1) allegedly worked together with Gupta and others in India and elsewhere to direct an assassination plot against an attorney and political activist, who is a US citizen of Indian origin, on US soil.

Gupta is an Indian national who resides in India, is an associate of CC-1, and has described his involvement in international narcotics and weapons trafficking in his communications with CC-1 and others, a media release said.

CC-1 is an Indian government agency employee who has variously described himself as a “senior field officer” with responsibilities in “security management” and “intelligence” and has referenced previously serving in India’s Central Reserve Police Force and receiving “officer training” in “battle craft” and “weapons”. CC-1 directed the assassination plot from India, it added.

Federal prosecutors alleged that CC-1 recruited Gupta in May 2023 to orchestrate the assassination in the US.

Pannun is a vocal critic of the Indian government and leads a US-based organisation that advocates for the secession of Punjab, a state in northern India that is home to a large population of Sikhs, an ethnoreligious minority group in India, the federal prosecutors said.

They alleged that on CC-1’s direction, Gupta contacted an individual whom he believed to be a criminal associate but he was in fact a confidential source working with the DEA (the CS) for assistance in contracting a hitman to murder the victim in New York City.

“The CS introduced Gupta to a purported hitman, who was in fact a DEA undercover officer (the UC). CC-1 subsequently agreed, in dealings brokered by Gupta, to pay the UC USD 1,00,000 to murder the victim. On or about June 9, 2023, CC-1 and Gupta arranged for an associate to deliver USD 15,000 in cash to the UC as an advance payment for the murder. CC-1’s associate then delivered the USD 15,000 to the UC in Manhattan,” they said.

In June 2023, in furtherance of the assassination plot, CC-1 provided Gupta with personal information about the victim, including the victim’s home address, phone numbers associated with the victim and details about the victim’s day-to-day conduct, which Gupta then passed on to the UC, they added.

CC-1 directed Gupta to provide regular updates on the progress of the assassination plot, which Gupta accomplished by allegedly forwarding to CC-1, among other things, surveillance photographs of the victim.

“Gupta directed the UC to carry out the murder as soon as possible, but Gupta also specifically instructed the UC not to commit the murder around the time of anticipated engagements scheduled to occur in the ensuing weeks between high-level US and Indian government officials,” the prosecutors said.

According to the prosecutors, after Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar was killed outside a gurdwara in Canada on June 18, 2023, Gupta allegedly told the UC that he “was also the target” and “we have so many targets”.

Around June 20, 2023, CC-1 sent Gupta a news article about the victim and messaged him “(i)t’s (a) priority now”, the prosecutors alleged.

India has publicly said a high-level inquiry is looking into the evidence shared by the US in the alleged plot to kill Pannun. 

Washington:

Indian national Nikhil Gupta, who is accused of being involved in murder-for-hire plot against a Sikh separatist, has been extradited from Czech Republic, media reports said Sunday.

Gupta, 52, was arrested in the Czech Republic last year at the request of the US government on charges of being involved in a plot to assassinate Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. He is expected to be produced before a federal court in New York on Monday.

Gupta is currently lodged at the federal Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, where he is listed as an inmate. The Washington Post was the first news outlet to report his extradition.

“Gupta, who had been detained in the Czech Republic, arrived in New York over the weekend, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive legal proceedings. Typically, extradited defendants must appear in court within a day of their arrival in the country,” the daily said.

Federal prosecutors allege that Gupta hired a hitman to kill Pannun and paid USD 15,000 in advance. They allege that an unnamed Indian government official was involved in it.

Gupta’s extradition comes ahead of the New Delhi visit of US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan for the annual ICET dialogue. The issue is expected to be raised by Sullivan before his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval.

India has denied its involvement in such a case and has instituted an investigation into the allegations.

Gupta through his attorney has denied the charges and has said that he has been “unfairly charged”.

“Gupta’s attorney, Rohini Musa, wrote in a petition to the Indian Supreme Court that her client is being unfairly prosecuted, saying there is “nothing on record to link the Petitioner to the massive alleged plot to assassinate the alleged victim,” The Washington Post said.

“Musa complained that Gupta received adverse legal advice from a Czech government-appointed attorney “under the undue influence of … U.S. Agencies” during the initial phase of his detention. She said India and the United States were “going back and forth to blame each other for their foreign policy,” the daily reported.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Washington:

Indian national Nikhil Gupta, who is accused of being involved in murder-for-hire plot against a Khalistan terrorist, has been extradited from Czech Republic, media reports said Sunday.

Gupta, 52, was arrested in the Czech Republic last year at the request of the US government on charges of being involved in a plot to assassinate Khalistan terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. He is expected to be produced before a federal court in New York on Monday.

Gupta is currently lodged at the federal Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, where he is listed as an inmate. The Washington Post was the first news outlet to report his extradition.

“Gupta, who had been detained in the Czech Republic, arrived in New York over the weekend, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive legal proceedings. Typically, extradited defendants must appear in court within a day of their arrival in the country,” the daily said.

Federal prosecutors allege that Gupta hired a hitman to kill Pannun and paid $15,000 in advance. They allege that an unnamed Indian government official was involved in it.

Gupta’s extradition comes ahead of the New Delhi visit of US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan for the annual ICET dialogue. The issue is expected to be raised by Sullivan before his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval.

India has denied its involvement in such a case and has instituted an investigation into the allegations.

Gupta through his attorney has denied the charges and has said that he has been “unfairly charged”.

“Gupta’s attorney, Rohini Musa, wrote in a petition to the Indian Supreme Court that her client is being unfairly prosecuted, saying there is “nothing on record to link the Petitioner to the massive alleged plot to assassinate the alleged victim,” The Washington Post said.

“Musa complained that Gupta received adverse legal advice from a Czech government-appointed attorney “under the undue influence of … U.S. Agencies” during the initial phase of his detention. She said India and the United States were “going back and forth to blame each other for their foreign policy,” the daily reported.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
| Photo Credit: AP

The Czech Constitutional Court has rejected a petition by Indian national Nikhil Gupta, detained in a prison in Prague, against his extradition to the U.S. to face murder-for-hire charges in an alleged assassination attempt on a Khalistani extremist on American soil.

Gupta, 52, was charged by U.S. federal prosecutors in an indictment unsealed in November last year with working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who holds dual American and Canadian citizenships, in the U.S.

Gupta was arrested in Prague, the Czech Republic on June 30, 2023, and is being held there currently. The U.S. government is seeking his extradition to America.

Also read: Will R&AW’s overseas operations affect ties? | Explained

The Czech Constitutional Court heard a petition by Gupta against the extradition.

“The Constitutional Court did not find any circumstance for which declaring extradition admissible would lead to a violation of any of the constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights and freedoms,” the court said in a statement on Wednesday.

The court said it ruled that lower courts had given due consideration to aspects that may prevent extradition. It also rejected arguments that the case was political.

“For the complainant, this brings the proceedings before the Czech courts to an end.”

The Constitutional Court said it has now confirmed the decision of the general courts on the admissibility of extradition, upholding the Municipal Court and The High Court’s order.

The court also upheld the local court’s decision to reject Gupta’s request for release from pre-trial detention and did not accept compensation for detention in the form of a monetary guarantee, or in the form of a ban on travel abroad.

Before the Constitutional Court, the applicant said courts did not examine all the essential circumstances that could become an obstacle to extradition, according to the statement.

A Czech high court in January ruled Gupta can be extradited to the U.S.

A final decision on whether to extradite Gupta will be made by Justice Minister Pavel Blazek.

The Washington Post, in April 2024, reported that Vikram Yadav, a Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) officer, was the Indian official behind the plot. The paper also said the then R&AW chief Samant Goel sanctioned the operation.

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs, however, dismissed the report, saying it makes “unwarranted and unsubstantiated imputations” to claim that Indian agents were involved in the plot to kill Pannun.

India has publicly said a high-level inquiry is looking into the evidence shared by the U.S. in the alleged plot to kill Pannun.