WORLD NEWS
An Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, 54, has pleaded guilty in a U.S. federal court to plotting the assassination of Sikh activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York, according to the US Department of Justice.
Gupta admitted to charges of murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with the failed plot. He entered the plea on February 13 in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 29.
Alleged Government Links
According to the Justice Department, Gupta acted under the direction of Vikash Yadav, an Indian government employee who worked in India’s Cabinet Secretariat overseeing the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the country’s foreign intelligence service. Yadav remains at large.
In May 2023, Yadav allegedly recruited Gupta to carry out the killing of Pannun, a U.S. citizen and lawyer who advocates for an independent Sikh state, Khalistan. Gupta attempted to hire what he believed was a criminal associate, who turned out to be working with U.S. law enforcement. He was then introduced to an undercover officer posing as a hitman.
The conspirators agreed on a $100,000 payment for the assassination, and $15,000 was paid upfront. The plot was disrupted before any attack occurred.
U.S. Officials Condemn Plot
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton stated that Gupta believed he could target someone in the United States “simply for exercising their American right to free speech,” but that he would now face justice. An FBI official described the case as an example of “transnational repression.”
Context and International Tensions
The case highlights broader concerns about threats against Sikh separatists abroad. Canada has separately accused India of involvement in the 2023 killing of another Sikh leader in British Columbia — claims denied by New Delhi.
Gupta was arrested in the Czech Republic in June 2023 and later extradited to the United States.
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