Indian team probing Pannun Murder plot, to travel to US today

An Indian enquiry committee established to investigate the American allegations of the "involvement" of an Indian government official in a foiled plot to assassinate a US national will be visiting here on Tuesday, the US Department of State said on Monday.

"The Enquiry Committee will be travelling to Washington, D.C. on October 15th, as part of their ongoing investigations to discuss the case, including information they have obtained, and to receive an update from US authorities regarding the US case that is proceeding," an official media release said.

The committee was established by India to investigate the activities of certain organised criminals and is actively investigating the individual who was identified last year in the Department of Justice's indictment as an Indian government employee who directed a foiled plot to assassinate a US citizen in New York City.


"Additionally, India has informed the United States they are continuing their efforts to investigate other linkages of the former government employee and will determine follow-up steps, as necessary," said the State Department.

In November last year, US federal prosecutors charged Indian national Nikhil Gupta with working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York. Gupta, arrested in the Czech Republic in June last year, was extradited to the US on June 14.

India has denied the allegations but has constituted an internal investigations team to look into it.

Indian national Nikhil Gupta was charged by federal prosecutors in November last year, in connection with his involvement in a foiled plot to assassinate Pannun. Gupta was arrested in the Czech Republic last year at the request of the US government.

US federal prosecutors had charged that Gupta was working with an Indian government employee and had agreed to pay an assassin $1,00,000 to kill Pannun, who lives in New York City.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a designated terrorist in India, is a leader of Khalistani separatist organisation Sikhs for Justice (SFJ).