The Justice Department on Thursday announced charges against former Indian government officials. murder plan against Gurpatwant Singh Panun, a prominent Sikh separatist who holds dual citizenship in the United States and Canada.
in statementThe Justice Department announced that Vikash Yadav, an alleged Indian government official, has been charged with murder for hire and money laundering. India says he is no longer employed by the government.
Yadav is said to be a former officer in India's foreign intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing.
Mr. Yadav's alleged co-conspirator Nikhil Gupta was indicted last year and extradited to the United States. According to the chargesheet, Yadav, also known as Vikas and Amanat, remains at large.
The indictment details how Yadav scouted Gupta to arrange an assassination in 2023 and how he contacted a suspected hitman in New York City at Yadav's direction.
U.S. officials said their investigation began when Gupta came into contact with a drug trafficker while searching for the killer, who turned out to be an informant for the Drug Enforcement Administration.
“The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue accountability for those who seek to harm or silence Americans, regardless of their position or proximity to power,” said Attorney General Merrick Garland. .
The indictment came as an Indian government committee investigating India's involvement in a failed plot to kill a prominent New York City activist met with US officials in Washington, DC.
“The individuals named in the Justice Department's indictment are no longer employees of the Indian government,” a spokesperson for India's Ministry of External Affairs said in a press conference.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters that the department was “pleased with the cooperation” from India and that “cooperation continues.”
The development comes as relations between India and Canada are at an all-time low over another murder case, that of Canadian Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country's intelligence capabilities are excellent. pursue credible suspicions It claimed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government was behind Nijjar's murder.
The Hill has reached out to the Indian embassy in Washington, D.C., for comment.
