Gurpatwant Singh Pannun Assassination Plot: India’s Probe Finds Involvement of Rogue Officials in US

An Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, was charged by federal prosecutors in November last year in connection with his involvement in a foiled plot to assassinate Pannun, who holds dual citizenship of the US and Canada. 

US federal prosecutors have charged that Gupta was working with an Indian government employee and had agreed to pay an assassin USD 1,00,000 to kill Pannun, who lives in New York City.

Also Read | "It's serious issue...working with India to hold accountable those responsible": US diplomat Donald Lu on Pannun case.

Now, after the latest investigation by India, it revealed that the rogue operatives not authorised by the government had been involved in the Pannun Assassination plot, as reported by Bloomberg. The report says that at least one person was directly involved in killing a Sikh leader in New York. 

The officials said the person is no longer working for India’s main spy agency, the Research and Analysis Wing. They asked not to be identified because the details of the investigation haven’t been made public. The individual is still employed by the government, and India hasn’t started any criminal action against him, the people said.  

"This is a serious issue. A serious issue between the United States and India. The Department of Justice has alleged that an Indian citizen at the behest of someone working in the Indian government has attempted to kill an American citizen on American soil. We take this in the administration incredibly seriously and have raised it at the highest levels with India," said Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu told members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Also Read | England Go Back: Khalistani Terrorist Gurpatwant Pannu Threatens Team Before India vs England Test Match in Ranchi.

"We are at the moment working with India to encourage India to hold accountable, those responsible for this terrible crime. What we can see is that India itself has announced that they have created a committee of inquiry to look into this matter and we ask them to work quickly and transparently to make sure justice is done," Lu said.