NEW YORK, United States
The United States has charged
a former Indian intelligence officer for allegedly directing a foiled plot to
assassinate an American citizen who advocates for Khalistan - an independent
Sikh state carved out of India.Yadav has been charged with plotting to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun
The US Attorney's Office for
the Southern District of New York said on Thursday that it had registered
"murder-for-hire and money laundering charges" against Vikash Yadav
for trying to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
The indictment of Yadav, for the first time,
implicates the Indian government directly in the attempted assassination of a
dissident.
The Indian government has said
that it was co-operating with the US' ongoing investigation. It has not
responded to the specific charges against Yadav yet.
Earlier this year, Nikhil
Gupta, an Indian national also charged in the case, was extradited
to the US from a prison in Prague.
Washington has accused Indian
agents of involvement in an assassination attempt on Pannun, a dual US-Canadian
citizen. India has labeled Pannun a terrorist, though he denies the allegation,
claiming to be an activist advocating for Khalistan.
On Thursday, India's foreign
ministry spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, stated that the individual referred to
as "CC-1" in the US Justice Department's indictment is no longer
employed by the Indian government. However, he did not provide a specific name,
leaving it unclear whether he was referring to Yadav, who is widely speculated
to be the same person.
According to the indictment,
Yadav was the mastermind behind the plot to murder Pannun and he recruited
Gupta in May 2023 to orchestrate the assassination in exchange for getting a
case against him in India dismissed.
"In or about June 2023,
in furtherance of the assassination plot, Yadav provided Gupta with personal
information about the victim, including the victim’s home address in New York
City, phone numbers associated with the victim, and details about the victim’s
day-to-day conduct," the indictment states.
Yadav's indictment comes days
after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged
that Indian agents were involved in the killing of Sikh separatist
leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia, setting off a new row
that led to both countries expelling diplomats.
India has rejected the
allegations as "preposterous", accusing Trudeau of pandering to
Canada’s large Sikh community for political gain.
The indictment describes Yadav
as a "citizen and resident of India". He has also been referred to as
Vikas and Amanat.
It states that he was part of
the Government of India's cabinet secretariat, under which the Research and
Analysis Wing (RAW) - the country's top intelligence agency - operates. RAW
falls under the authority of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
The indictment further states
that Yadav had described his position as "Senior Field Officer" with
responsibilities in "security management" and
"intelligence".
It adds that he has also
served in India's paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and had
received training in "battle craft and weapons".
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