Former Indian Intelligence Officer Charged in U.S. Over Failed Assassination Plot of Khalistani Leader

The United States has charged Vikash Yadav, a former Indian intelligence officer, with coordinating a failed assassination plot targeting Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Khalistani separatist living in New York. The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that Yadav worked alongside accomplices in India and Europe to orchestrate the killing of Pannun, a known advocate for the Khalistan movement, which seeks to establish an independent Sikh homeland.

Yadav allegedly hired Nikhil Gupta to carry out the assassination, but the plan unraveled when Gupta was arrested in Prague and later extradited to the U.S. The FBI revealed that the hired hitman was, in fact, an undercover informant. During the investigation, Gupta was caught on camera exchanging $15,000 as an advance payment for the murder, adding to the evidence against Yadav.

The plot thickened after the assassination of another Khalistani figure, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Canada, leading Yadav and Gupta to fast-track their plans to kill Pannun. However, U.S. authorities intervened, preventing the murder from taking place.

India has disavowed any official connection to the incident, with the Ministry of External Affairs confirming that Yadav is no longer in government service. Meanwhile, U.S. officials have signaled their intent to seek Yadav’s extradition from India to face the charges.

This revelation has intensified discussions around Khalistani activism abroad and the complex diplomatic relations between the U.S., India, and Canada, as each country navigates their respective interests in handling separatist movements and cross-border plots.