Mint Explainer: The fallout of the Pannun allegations
It’s been almost a month since news broke of an alleged plot to assassinate pro-Khalistan figure Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the United States, with possible Indian involvement. In the weeks since, India and the US have scrambled to minimise damage to their relationship. Mint takes a look at how the two countries have responded and the impact on India-US relations.
American officials charged a 52-year-old Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, with murder-for-hire after they uncovered evidence implicating him in a plot to kill Pannun. The pro-Khalistan figure, who is the face of separatist group Sikhs for Justice, is an American citizen. An unsealed indictment also pointed to an unnamed Indian intelligence official as the person directing this plot.
The indictment provided details of electronic communications and messages between Gupta and undercover law enforcement officials, whom Gupta believed were criminal associates. According to media reports, America had shared this information with India after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s June visit to the United States. Unlike with Canada, India has actively cooperated with the United States on this matter.
Foreign minister S Jaishankar explained that, in contrast to how a similar instance with Canada played out following allegations of Indian involvement in the murder of another pro-Khalistan figure Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Washington had provided India specific information to work with. The relative importance of America’s position in Indian foreign policy is also playing a role here, according to some experts. Once news of the case broke, India set up an investigation into the matter on the basis of American inputs.
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