A man who allegedly ordered the attempted murder of a Sikh leader in the United States at India’s request has three more high-profile targets in Canada.
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Nikhil Gupta, 52, was charged Wednesday in New York, after being arrested in Czechia at the request of American authorities. The man is suspected of having orchestrated an attempted murder last June of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a founding lawyer of the American organization Sikhs For Justice and one of the main activists in favor of the creation of Khalistan.
However, according to the indictment published Wednesday by the American justice system, Gupta would have had three targets to kill in Canada after the attempted murder of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
According to U.S. authorities, Gupta was in contact with an Indian government employee who contacted him on June 20, 2023, saying that Mr. Singh Pannun “is the priority now.”
Gupta then allegedly contacted one of his associates – in reality a source from the American authorities – to tell him to “find an opportunity” to kill the victim in New York and to “do it quickly”. “(Before) June 29, we have to complete four jobs,” Gupta reportedly said, referring to “three jobs in Canada.”
With this arrest, the United States found itself following Canada in accusing India of being behind assassination attempts on Sikh leaders in North America.
In September, the Trudeau government accused India of being behind the murder of Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, killed on June 18 in Surrey, a suburb of Vancouver. This statement by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau plunged Canada into a diplomatic crisis with India which resulted in the dismissal of dozens of diplomats.
In its indictment against Gupta, American justice reports comments made by the accused which refer precisely to the murder which occurred on Canadian soil.
“(Gurpatwant Singh Pannun) will be more careful, because in Canada, his colleague fell. (…) He is going to be more careful, so we must not give him a chance,” Gupta reportedly told the American undercover source.
The allegations made by American justice have not yet been proven in court.
