Nikhil Gupta admits three criminal charges related to failed Delhi-backed plot to assassinate Sikh separatist
Nikhil Gupta, accused of plotting the murder of 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 criminal charges, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan said.
Nikhil Gupta, 54, admitted to 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 federal Judge Sarah Netburn in federal court in Manhattan. He has been held in Brooklyn since his extradition in June 2024 from the Czech Republic, where he was arrested a year earlier. He had initially pleaded not guilty.
U.S. prosecutors allege that Gupta conspired with an Indian government official to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a U.S. resident and dual American-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 against 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 plot, identifying Vikram Yadav as having assembled a “strike team.”
In April 2024, the newspaper said the White House considered the matter serious, with then-spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre telling reporters: “This is a serious matter.” The report also cited RAW’s alleged involvement in a separate assassination of a Sikh leader in Canada and described Pannun as one of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s most vocal foreign critics.
Pannun serves as general counsel for Sikhs for Justice, which India designated as an “illegal association” in 2019 before labeling it an “individual terrorist” in 2020.
Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had earlier accused New Delhi of being involved in the assassination of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, accusations that India rejected, prompting visa restrictions and diplomatic withdrawals. Canada subsequently suspended free trade talks.
Separately, The Guardian previously reported that RAW agents were allegedly linked to up to 20 extrajudicial killings in Pakistan since 2020.
(REUTERS WITH NEWS POSTS)
