LONDON: The United States has filed criminal charges against a senior Indian official from the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) for orchestrating a thwarted assassination attempt on Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York City last year. This development marks a significant escalation in efforts to hold the Indian government accountable for acts of violence and terrorism on US soil.
Vikash Yadav, an officer in India’s foreign intelligence service, is named in a new indictment issued by federal prosecutors. He faces charges of money laundering, conspiracy, and leading a murder-for-hire plot aimed at killing Pannun, a US and Canadian citizen who serves as the general counsel for Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), an organization advocating for an independent Sikh state called Khalistan through the Khalistan Referendum.
Nikhil Gupta, Yadav’s co-conspirator, was previously arrested, extradited to the US, and is currently imprisoned in Brooklyn. Yadav, identified by law enforcement as the “mastermind” behind the plot, remains in India, and the US has formally requested his extradition to face the charges.
According to the indictment, Yadav, described as a government employee at the time, began planning the attack in May 2023, collaborating with others both in India and internationally.
Reacting to the indictment, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun stated, “By indicting RAW Official Vikash Yadav in this ‘Murder For Hire’ plot, the US government has reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the life, liberty, and free expression of its citizens both domestically and abroad.
Yadav is just a mid-level official, assigned by NSA Ajit Doval and former RAW Chief Samant Goel to eliminate me as part of the Modi government’s strategy to violently suppress the Khalistan Referendum campaign, which seeks to achieve the independence of Punjab through democratic processes.”
He continued, “The Modi government seeks to kill me because, as General Counsel for ‘Sikhs For Justice,’ I am facilitating voting on the issue: ‘Should Indian-administered Punjab be an independent country?’ The assassination attempt on American soil exemplifies India’s transnational terrorism, posing a challenge to US sovereignty and a threat to free speech and democracy. This clearly demonstrates that while India resorts to violence, pro-Khalistan Sikhs believe in using ballots.”
Pannun emphasized that ongoing assassination attempts by the Modi regime will not deter him from organizing the independence referendum, with plans for the New Zealand phase set for November 17, 2024, in Auckland. He remarked, “Despite India’s violent tactics against pro-Khalistan Sikhs, SFJ is dedicated to resolving the sovereignty dispute over Indian-occupied Punjab through a referendum.
Following the assassination of Nijjar in Canada and the attempted assassination against me in the US, India has extended its violent suppression of the Sikh movement for self-determination beyond its borders, reminiscent of the extrajudicial killings of pro-Khalistan Sikhs during the 1990s.”
Attorney General Merrick Garland asserted that the Justice Department will tirelessly pursue accountability for anyone, regardless of status, who seeks to harm or silence American citizens. Rep. Jim Himes highlighted the importance of ensuring that every country understands that extrajudicial killings on American soil are unacceptable.
The decision to charge Yadav comes after months of frustration among some Biden administration officials regarding India’s internal investigation into the assassination attempt, with concerns privately expressed that India’s efforts would be inadequate.
Gupta had been introduced to a supposed hitman, later revealed to be an undercover officer, who received Pannun’s personal information from Yadav. Prosecutors noted that Gupta urged the hitman to expedite the killing but to avoid timing it with high-profile US-India meetings.
Shortly before Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the US, masked gunmen killed Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside a Sikh temple in British Columbia. Gupta allegedly informed the hitman the day after that Nijjar was also a target, implying there was no need to delay the assassination plot against Pannun.
The latest indictment is viewed as a serious escalation in the rise of lethal plotting and other forms of violent transnational repression targeting diaspora communities in the US, according to Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
This confrontation with New Delhi over the foiled assassination coincides with Canada’s allegations of a broader Indian campaign against dissidents, including claims of government-directed violence.
Yadav is accused of leveraging his official position and access to confidential information to orchestrate the attempted murder of Pannun, a vocal critic of the Indian government, on US soil, according to DEA Administrator Anne Milgram.
In response to these events, Canada expelled Indian diplomats linked to the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was closely associated with Pannun. The US Justice Department clarified that Nijjar and Pannun were connected, and Gupta viewed after Nijjar’s killing in Canada that there was now an urgent need to eliminate Pannun.
In a recent statement, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned India’s actions, asserting that it constitutes a violation of Canadian sovereignty. Trudeau described Nijjar’s murder as part of a broader operation, with Indian government representatives systematically targeting dissidents in Canada, adding that violence against Canadians has been enabled by the Indian government.
While Trudeau aimed to maintain a non-confrontational policy with India as a significant trading partner, he vowed to uphold Canadian sovereignty.
