New Delhi: India reacted sharply to a report by The Washington Post on the alleged assassination plot of Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the US. Describing the report as “unwarranted and unsubstantiated”, official spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Randhir Jaiswal said, “There is an ongoing investigation of the High-Level Committee set up by the Government of India to look into the security concerns shared by the US government on networks of organized criminals, terrorists and others. Speculative and irresponsible comments on it are not helpful.”
The statement by the MEA came amid an “investigative” report by The Washington Post claiming that a RAW official, identified as Vikram Yadav, was involved in the assassination plot of Pannun in the US, and the move was approved by the then Indian spy agency chief Samant Goel.
Pannun, one of the main leaders of the Khalistan movement, is the legal advisor and spokesperson for Sikhs for Justice, which aims to promote the idea of a separate Sikh state. The Indian government has declared him a terrorist.
The White House, meanwhile, said India is taking the allegations regarding the assassination plot of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun seriously. It, however, refrained from commenting on the FBI probe into the matter and the criminal case filed by the Department of Justice. Replying to questions on the report by The Washington Post, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said an investigation was underway and the Department of Justice (DOJ) was running a criminal investigation.
She asserted that India is an important strategic partner of the United States and “we are pursuing an ambitious agenda to expand our cooperation in several areas”. About the news report, Jean-Pierre added, “We have been really consistent about that and have laid that out multiple times, whether it’s a meeting here with the prime minister or a meeting abroad.”
The alleged plot to kill Pannun in the US coincided with the June 18 fatal shooting of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey in Canada’s British Columbia province in June last year.
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India summons Canadian diplomat
India summoned the Canadian Deputy High Commissioner and lodged a strong protest over the pro-Khalistan slogans raised during a public event in Toronto in the presence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The event was also attended by Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre and Trudeau’s ruling coalition partner, New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh.
