Nikhil Gupta admits to three charges of failed Delhi-backed plot to assassinate Sikh separatist
Nikhil Gupta, accused of plotting to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, in New York City, USA on June 17, 2024 in this courtroom sketch. PHOTO: REUTERS
NEW YORK:
An Indian man accused of orchestrating a failed Indian government-backed plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist in New York City pleaded guilty Friday to three charges, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan said.
Nikhil Gupta, 54, admitted murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and conspiracy to commit money laundering, offenses that carry a combined maximum sentence of 40 years in prison.
Gupta entered his plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn in federal court in Manhattan. He has been detained in Brooklyn since his June 2024 extradition from the Czech Republic, where he was arrested a year earlier. He initially pleaded not guilty.
U.S. prosecutors allege Gupta conspired with an Indian official to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a U.S. resident and dual U.S.-Canadian citizen who advocates for a sovereign Sikh state in northern India.
India has denied any involvement, saying such actions are against government policy. However, revelations of alleged assassination plots targeting Sikh separatists in both the United States and Canada have strained diplomatic relations.
Last year, The Washington Post reported that an officer from India’s intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, was directly involved in the foiled plan, and identified Vikram Yadav as having assembled a ‘hit team’.
In April 2024, the newspaper said the White House considered the case serious, and then-spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters, “This is a serious matter.” The report also cited alleged RAW involvement in a separate killing of a Sikh leader in Canada and described Pannun as one of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s most vocal overseas critics.
Pannun serves as the advocate general of Sikhs for Justice, which India designated as an “unlawful association” in 2019 before labeling him an “individual terrorist” in 2020.
Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had previously accused New Delhi of involvement in the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, allegations India denied, triggering visa restrictions and diplomatic withdrawals. Canada later suspended free trade negotiations.
Separately, The Guardian previously reported that RAW operatives were allegedly linked to as many as 20 extrajudicial killings in Pakistan since 2020.
(REUTERS WITH INPUT FROM NEWS DESK)
