An Indian intelligence official has been indicted in the United States for his alleged role in a plot to assassinate a prominent Sikh separatist leader, the US Department of Justice announced on Thursday. The official, Vikash Yadav, 39, is accused of conspiring to hire a hitman to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US and Canadian citizen and leader of the New York-based Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), a group advocating for the secession of India’s Punjab region.
Yadav, who remains at large, faces charges of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and money laundering. He is the second Indian national to be implicated in the assassination plot. Nikhil Gupta, 53, another Indian citizen, pleaded not guilty to similar charges in June following his extradition from the Czech Republic.
According to US authorities, Yadav, an employee of the Indian government’s Cabinet Secretariat, directed the assassination plot and recruited Gupta in May 2023 to hire a hitman. Gupta allegedly contacted a person he believed to be a criminal associate, but the individual was an undercover source working with the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
DEA chief Anne Milgram stated that Yadav used his government position to orchestrate the attempted murder of Pannun, an outspoken critic of the Indian government. Attorney General Merrick Garland emphasized the US government’s commitment to holding accountable those who attempt to harm American citizens, regardless of their official roles.
Pannun condemned the assassination plot as “India’s transnational terrorism” and a threat to free speech. The case has drawn parallels with similar allegations from Canada, where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused India of orchestrating the killing of a Sikh separatist leader on Canadian soil last year. Both Canada and India have since expelled each other’s diplomats amid rising tensions.
India has informed the US that Yadav is no longer employed by its government, a move that contrasts with its more defiant stance towards Canada’s allegations.
