Washington: The lawmakers “welcomed” the Indian government’s announcement of a committee of enquiry to probe the alleged foiled assassination plot
U.S. authorities said an Indian government official directed a plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York City after he advocated for a sovereign state for Sikhs.
U.S. authorities said an Indian government official directed a plot to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York City after he advocated for a sovereign state for Sikhs.
The Indian American Members of the US Congress on Friday came together to caution New Delhi to set accountability of people responsible for an alleged plot to assassinate a Khalistani Sikh extremist and India-designated terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York.
In a joint statement, all five Indian-American legislators in the US Congress–Ami Bera, Pramila Jayapal, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Shri Thanedar– said that relations between India and the United States could face “significant damage” if India did not fully investigate and hold the people, including the officials of the Government of India, responsible for an alleged assassination attempt at the Khalistani terrorist.
They also “welcomed” the Indian government’s announcement of a committee of enquiry to probe the alleged foiled assassination plot and said that New Delhi should give an assurance to Washington DC that “this” (hatching plots to kill a US citizen in the US territory) would “not happen again”.
The statement came after the US federal prosecutors released a new and detailed indictment of an Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, for attempting to hire a hitman to kill Pannun. The indictment also mentioned an unnamed but identified Indian government official (‘CC-1’) for recruiting Gupta, who is currently in the Czech Republic and facing extradition proceedings initiated by the US, to orchestrate the conspiracy.
In the press release, the US representatives said, “We appreciate the Administration providing us a classified briefing on the Department of Justice’s indictment of Nikhil Gupta, which alleges that an Indian government official engaged in a murder-for-hire plot of an American citizen.”
The lawmakers noted that they had received a closed-door classified briefing from the US administration on the charges and stressed that the safety and well-being of constituents is the “most important priority”
They also noted that the partnership between India and Congress has made a “meaningful impact” on the lives of people of both nations, however, they stressed that the safety and well-being of their constituents were of utmost priority.
