A US court has summoned the Indian government after Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun filed a civil lawsuit, alleging a plot to murder him. The summons by the US District Court for Southern District of New York names Government of India, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, former R&AW chief Samant Goel, R&AW agent Vikram Yadav, and Indian businessman Nikhil Gupta. The summons asks New Delhi and those named to file a reply within 21 days.
The Centre is yet to respond to the summons. Pannu’s X handle, on which he shared a copy of the summons, has been withheld.
In November, the UK newspaper Financial Times reported that the US had thwarted a plot to kill Pannun, who heads the radical outfit, Sikhs for Justice, and holds dual citizenship of the US and Canada. Officials in the Joe Biden administration later confirmed this.
In its first response, the External Affairs Ministry said it is a “matter of concern” and stressed that India has launched a high-level probe.
“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 that this is also contrary to government policy,” then MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
In May this year, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar said India is investigating the matter, but stressed that it would not impact the “upward trajectory” of India-US ties.
“The United States brought to our attention certain information in good faith because we also believe some of it has implications for our own system,” he said in an interview to news agency PTI.
“We are investigating it. But I do not think the fundamental course of the upward trajectory of India-US is impacted by this at all,” he said.
US ambassador to India Eric Garcetti has told NDTV that this matter will not affect India-US ties.
Pannun is known to put out incendiary speeches and threats against Indian leaders and institutions. New Delhi designated him a terrorist in 2020.
