Indian Intelligence Officer Charged with Plot to Assassinate Sikh Leader in NYC

Former Indian Intelligence Officer Accused of Directing Assassination Plot in NYC

The U.S. Justice Department has indicted a former Indian intelligence officer, Vikash Yadav, for allegedly directing an assassination attempt against Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh American leader and vocal critic of the Indian government. The alleged plot took place in New York City last summer.

Yadav, who was employed by India's foreign intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), is accused of orchestrating the murder plot while working from India. The indictment alleges that Yadav instructed an associate, Nikhil Gupta, to arrange the assassination in exchange for dropping criminal charges against Gupta in India.

Gupta, under Yadav's direction, contacted a supposed hitman who was actually an undercover DEA officer. They arranged to deliver $15,000 as advance payment for the assassination.

The alleged plot was foiled by U.S. intelligence agencies, who concluded that senior officials in the Indian government likely authorized the attempt. The indictment also references the killing of another Sikh separatist leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Canada last June, stating that Yadav considered Nijjar a target as well.

Yadav remains at large and is charged with murder for hire, murder for hire conspiracy, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He faces a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison. The Indian Embassy in Washington D.C. has not yet responded to the charges.

Following the indictment, Pannun, the target of the assassination plot, stated that the charges demonstrate the U.S. government's commitment to protecting the freedom of speech and expression of its citizens.

What is the Sikh Separatist Movement?

Pannun is the general counsel of Sikhs for Justice, a group that advocates for the secession of Punjab, a state in northern India with a large Sikh population, into an independent state called Khalistan. Sikhs are an ethnoreligious minority group in India.

The charges against Yadav have raised concerns about the growing threat of transnational repression targeting diaspora communities in the United States.