'A matter of concern': India on Pannun plot indictment

India on Thursday described a case filed in a US court against an Indian national for his alleged involvement in a plot to kill a Khalistani leader on American soil as a "matter of concern", and said follow-up action will be taken on the findings of an inquiry committee looking into the matter.

- Rezaul H Laskar

US prosecutors have alleged that Nikhil Gupta, alias Nick, worked on the directions of an Indian government employee, who described himself as a “senior field officer” responsible for intelligence, to arrange the assassination of US-Canadian citizen Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a senior leader of the outlawed Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) who has been declared a terrorist by India.

While the indictment filed in a US federal court in Manhattan on Wednesday did not name the Indian official (it referred to him as CC-1) or the victim of the assassination plot, unnamed American officials have told the media that Pannun was the target. A recent report in Financial Times said that US authorities thwarted a plot to kill Pannun and issued a warning to the Indian side.

“As regards the case against an individual that has been filed in a US court, allegedly linking him to an Indian official, this is a matter of concern. We have said, and let me reiterate, that this is also contrary to government policy,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told a media briefing.

Without referring to Pannun or giving further details, Bagchi said the US side had shared “some inputs pertaining to [a] nexus between organised criminals, gun runners, terrorists [and] other extremists”.

He added, “We take, of course, such inputs very seriously, and a high-level inquiry committee has been constituted to look into all the relevant aspects of the matter. And necessary follow-up action will be taken based on the findings of the inquiry committee.”