An individual from India has admitted guilt to U.S. criminal charges for orchestrating an unsuccessful plot, supported by the Indian government, to assassinate a Sikh separatist in New York City. Nikhil Gupta, aged 54, acknowledged his involvement in murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Accusations from U.S. prosecutors claim that Gupta conspired with an Indian government representative to target Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen and attorney at Sikhs for Justice in New York, who advocates for a sovereign Sikh state in northern India. The Indian government has distanced itself from any involvement in the scheme against Pannun, stating it goes against official policy.
The revelation of alleged assassination plans aimed at Sikh separatists in the U.S. and Canada has strained relations with India, which denies any connection to such activities. The case involving Gupta also referenced the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, B.C., in June 2023, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau later linked to the Indian government.
Gupta admitted his guilt in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn in Manhattan federal court. He disclosed that he conspired with another individual to have a person murdered in the United States and paid $15,000 to someone in New York to carry out the crime. Gupta has been detained in Brooklyn, N.Y., since his extradition to the U.S. from the Czech Republic in June 2024, awaiting sentencing on May 29.
Prosecutors revealed that Vikash Yadav, an Indian government official, recruited Gupta in May 2023 to plan Pannun’s assassination, with Gupta disclosing his involvement in international narcotics and arms trafficking to Yadav. Yadav, affiliated with India’s Cabinet Secretariat, arranged for a $100,000 payment to an undercover officer of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, posing as a hitman, to eliminate Pannun.
Yadav faces the same charges as Gupta but is not in U.S. custody. The U.S. Attorney for Manhattan, Jay Clayton, condemned Gupta’s actions, emphasizing that targeting a U.S. citizen in New York City for exercising their right to free speech would not go unpunished.