Pannun Murder Plot: Accused Nikhil Gupta Pleads Not Guilty in New York Court

New Delhi: Indian national Nikhil Gupta, who is accused of being involved in the plotting the  assassination of Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil, pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges in New York on Monday.

Gupta, 53, was produced before a federal court in New York on Monday, according to his attorney, Jeffrey Chabrowe. Gupta was extradited to the United States from the Czech Republic on June 14.

‘Gupta Will Now Face Justice in US Courtroom’

The Indian national had visited Prague in June last year where he was arrested by the Czech authorities at the request of the US on charges of being involved in a plot to assassinate Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Merrick Garland has said that the 53-year-old will now face justice in a US courtroom. He asserted that “the country will not tolerate attempts to harm its citizens”. "This extradition makes clear that the Justice Department will not tolerate attempts to silence or harm American citizens," news agency PTI quoted Garland as saying. 

"Nikhil Gupta will now face justice in an American courtroom for his involvement in an alleged plot, directed by an employee of the Indian government, to target and assassinate a US citizen for his support of the Sikh separatist movement in India," he said. 

Charges of murder-for-hire and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire have been levelled against Gupta. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for each charge. 

Nikhil Gupta Extradited to US

The US has accused Gupta of conniving with an Indian government official to execute Pannun’s assassination bid which had failed eventually. Earlier, a Czech court had rejected his appeal to avoid extradition to the US last month, further paving the way for the Czech justice minister to hand him over to the US.
The incidents of assassination bids targeting Sikh separatists in the United States and Canada have strained diplomatic ties with India.
However, the Indian government has been denying any involvement in these plots. 

Earlier in September, Canada had said that its intelligence agencies were probing the allegations linking the Indian government to the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada in June 2023. 

Meanwhile, Pannun has alleged that Gupta is just a “foot soldier” and those responsible for hiring him are some Indian government officials. Pannun is an India-designated terrorist who holds dual citizenship of American and Canada.