Plot to kill a Sikh separatist leader thwarted in the US

Washington: US authorities thwarted a plot to kill a Sikh separatist leader on American soil and issued a warning to India over concerns the Modi government was involved, a senior Biden administration official said.

The US is treating the plot to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun with utmost seriousness and has raised the issue with the Indian government “at the senior-most levels,” the White House said.

Sikhs for Justice leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

The official declined to comment on when or how US officials became aware of the plot as well as how the alleged assassination attempt was derailed. The FBI is investigating the matter, the official said.

Spokespeople for the FBI and Justice Department declined to comment.

The revelation follows the September disclosure by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of what he said were credible allegations that the Indian government may have had links to the assassination in that country of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India rejected the accusation as absurd, but Canada expelled a top Indian diplomat while it investigated.

The thwarted assassination plot was first reported by the Financial Times, which said the US has informed some allies.

Pannun, told this masthead in September, that Sikhs in Australia could be the next target for assassination.

US National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said the Indian counterparts expressed “surprise and concern”.

“They stated that activity of this nature was not their policy. Based on discussion with senior US government officials, we understand the Indian government is further investigating this issue and will have more to say about it in the coming days. We have conveyed our expectation that anyone deemed responsible should be held accountable,” the statement added.

Apart from the diplomatic warning, US federal prosecutors also filed a sealed indictment against at least one suspect in a New York district court, the FT said.

In September, Pannun said peaceful protests in Australia had been disrupted, quasi-referendums had been blocked and demonstrators had been intimidated by Indian government supporters in Australia.

“Australia is the next target for Indian agents,” he said.

Law enforcement officials have repeatedly warned about what they say is an alarming trend of foreign governments seeking to harass, stalk or intimidate dissidents and political opponents in the US.

India’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement noting the US had raised information pertaining to a “nexus between organised criminals, gun runners, terrorists and others” during recent conversations. The statement described the information as a “cause of concern for both countries” and said India took it seriously.

AP

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