Page 4 - Khalistan Issue

Czech court rules murder suspect Nikhil Gupta can be extradited to US

A Czech high court has ruled that Indian national Nikhil Gupta, detained in a prison here on murder-for-hire charges in an alleged assassination attempt on a Khalistani extremist on American soil, can be extradited to the US, according to local media reports. Gupta, 52, was charged by US federal prosecutors in an indictment unsealed in November last year with working with an Indian government employee in an alleged plot to kill Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who holds dual US and Canadian citizenships, on American soil. Gupta, arrested in the Czech Republic on June 30 last year, is currently held in Prague's Pankrak prison. The Prague High Court confirmed in a closed session that Gupta can be extradited to the US, the Seznam.cz web portal reported on Friday. The Prague High Court's order came as it rejected Gupta's appeal against a December decision by a lower court that ruled that extradition was allowed. A spokesman for the Prague High Court declined to immediate

Designated terrorist Pannun issues fresh threats ahead of Republic Day

Designated terrorist, US based Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the founder of the banned Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), has issued fresh threats ahead of Republic Day

US judge denies Nikhil Gupta's request for defence materials in Pannun case

A US judge has denied a request for defence materials by Indian national Nikhil Gupta, charged by federal prosecutors in a murder-for-hire plot to kill a Khalistani separatist on American soil. United States District Judge Victor Marrero, in an order Thursday, denied a motion filed by Gupta's attorney seeking discovery material in the case. Gupta, 52, was charged by federal prosecutors here in an indictment unsealed in November last year with working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who holds dual US and Canadian citizenships, on American soil. Gupta was arrested in Prague, the Czech Republic on June 30, 2023 and is being held there currently. The US government is seeking his extradition to America. In his order, Marrero said that the Court is persuaded by the government's argument that Gupta has no right to discovery at this time. He cited Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 16.1, which provides that no la

US objects to providing defence material to Nikhil Gupta in Pannun case

The US government has objected to providing defence materials to Indian national Nikhil Gupta, detained in a Czech prison on murder-for-hire charges in a foiled assassination attempt on a Khalistani extremist, saying it will provide the information only upon his appearance in a New York court and arraignment in the case. Gupta, 52, was charged by federal prosecutors here in an indictment unsealed in November last year with working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who holds dual US and Canadian citizenships, on American soil. Gupta was arrested in Prague, the Czech Republic on June 30, 2023 and is being held there currently. The US government is seeking his extradition to America. Gupta's attorney filed a Motion to Compel Production of Discovery' on January 4 in the US District Court, Southern District of New York requesting the Court to direct federal prosecutors to provide the defence materials relevant to

Hindu Temple defaced with pro-Khalistan graffiti in California's Hayward

A Hindu temple in Hayward, California, has been defaced with pro-Khalistan graffiti. This incident at Sherawali Temple comes weeks after the Swaminarayan temple in Newark, California was defaced by anti-India graffiti.The Hindu American Foundation has reported that Sherawali Temple in California was defaced with pro-Khalistani graffiti. It has also shared a picture of the defacement.In a post shared on X, the Hindu American Foundation stated, "#Breaking: Another Bay Area Hindu temple attacked with pro-#Khalistan graffiti. The Vijay's Sherawali Temple in Hayward, CA sustained a copycat defacement just two weeks after the Swaminarayan Mandir attack and one week after a theft at the Shiv Durga temple in the same area. HAF is in touch with temple leaders and in contact with @AlamedaPD & @CivilRights."The Hindu American Foundation also highlighted the importance of installing working security cameras and alarm systems, considering the rising threat from Khalistan supporters.Taking to

SC rejects plea of Indian accused of plotting to kill Pannun in US

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a plea for consular access moved by a family member of Indian national Nikhil Gupta, who has been accused of plotting an assassination attempt on Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta said, There is nothing much we can do. You are entitled for consular access under the Vienna convention, which you have already got. The bench told senior advocate CA Sundaram, appearing for kin of Gupta, that this court should respect the jurisdiction and sovereignty of the foreign court and law of that land and, therefore, it cannot go into the merit of the matter. We will not allow you to speak anything about the foreign court, the bench told Sundaram, when he tried to submit that Gupta has been placed under solitary confinement and was not granted any consular access post his indictment. The bench noted that on September 17, 2023, Gupta has received consular access in the matter and he h

Sidhu Moosewala murder 'mastermind' Goldy Brar declared terrorist by Centre

Goldy Brar is an active member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, which had claimed responsibility for the murder of Moosewala, killed on May 29, 2022

Hope Canada will take action against separatists, anti-India elements: MEA

India on Thursday said its "core" issue with Canada remained that of the space given to anti-India elements operating from that country. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at a media briefing that India also hoped that Canada will take action against the separatists and anti-India elements. The core issue remains the space being given to the separatists and anti-India elements, Bagchi said. The ties between India and Canada have been under severe strain following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in September linking Indian agents to the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June. India strongly rejected the charges.

We are in era of multilateralism: PM Modi in rare interview amid Pannun row

India's commitment is to the rule of law and if someone gives information, it would look into it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the Financial Times in his first comments on the US allegations relating to an Indian link over a foiled plot targeting a Sikh separatist. In an interview to the British daily, Modi said there is strong bipartisan support for strengthening of India-US relations and it is not appropriate to link a few incidents with diplomatic ties. "If someone gives us any information, we would definitely look into it," Modi said, according to FT. "If a citizen of ours has done anything good or bad, we are ready to look into it. Our commitment is to the rule of law," he said. The US federal prosecutors have charged that one Nikhil Gupta was working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who holds dual citizenship of the US and Canada. India has already constituted a probe committee to investigate ...

Trudeau suggests 'tonal shift' in India-Canada ties amid Nijjar killing row

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday said India's ties with Canada may have undergone "a tonal shift" following the indictment of an Indian national in the US for plotting an assassination attempt on a Sikh separatist on American soil. "I think there is a beginning of an understanding that they can't bluster their way through this and there is an openness to collaborating in a way that perhaps they were less open before," Trudeau told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. He said the US indictment appears to have convinced the Indian government to adopt a more sober tone. "There's an understanding that maybe, maybe just churning out attacks against Canada isn't going to make this problem go away." "We don't want to be in a situation of having a fight with India right now over this," he said. "We want to be working on that trade deal. We want to be advancing the Indo-Pacific strategy. But it is foundational for Canada to stand up for people's rights, for people's safety, and f

US, Canada issues not same: Jaishankar on allegations over Khalistan row

Pointing to the US indictment of Nikhil Gupta in connection with a foiled plot to assassinate a US citizen in New York City, Jaishankar said India is looking into the details shared by the US

Family of Indian national charged in plot to kill Pannun approaches SC

The plea, filed by Nikhil Gupta's family, seeks Indian government's intervention in extradition proceedings initiated by the US

Indian-American Sikh leader says no support for Khalistan movement in US

A prominent Indian-American Sikh leader has said that there is no support for the Khalistan movement in the US, neither in the government nor in the community. Jassee Singh from the Sikhs of America organisation also urged the Modi government to provide a comprehensive developmental package for Punjab to address several key challenges being faced by the state, including the problem of illicit drugs among the youths. Modi Government's relationship with the Sikhs and the things that he has done for this community is unprecedented as compared to the previous governments. There is no doubt about that," Singh told PTI in an interview. "At the same time, there are several Sikh issues that need to be addressed. This includes the atrocities against the Sikhs in the 1984 riots. No Sikhs would forget this, Singh said. The Modi government has tried its best to address the concerns of the Sikhs, but there are a number of issues that he still needs to address, he said adding that the prime ...

Made allegations publicly to 'put a chill' on India, says Canada's Trudeau

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that his decision to make allegations in public about a possible Indian government link and the killing of a pro-Khalistan separatist was intended to "put a chill" on them from repeating a similar action. The ties between India and Canada came under severe strain following Trudeau's allegations on September 18 of a "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18 in British Columbia. India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020. India rejected Trudeau's allegations as "absurd" and "motivated". In a year-end interview with The Canadian Press news agency, Trudeau said he decided to make the announcement on September 18 because he expected that information would be eventually leaked through the media. The prime minister said the message he delivered in the House of Commons that day was intended as an "extra level of deterrence" to keep Canadians safer. Trudeau said hi

Fake and fabricated: MEA on report claiming memo targeting Sikh separatists

India on Sunday night described as "fake" and "completely fabricated" a media report which claimed that a "secret memo" was issued by New Delhi in April to take "concrete" measures against certain Sikh separatists including Hardeep Singh Nijjar. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the report is part of a "sustained disinformation campaign" against India and the outlet that came out with it is known for propagating "fake narratives" peddled by Pakistani intelligence. Online American media outlet The Intercept came out with the report. "We strongly assert that such reports are fake and completely fabricated. There is no such memo," Bagchi said. "This is part of a sustained disinformation campaign against India. The outlet in question is known for propagating fake narratives peddled by Pakistani intelligence. The posts of the authors confirm this linkage," he said. "Those who amplify such fake news only do so at the cost of their own credibility," he said, ...

'Rejected allegations of India's involvement in act of violence in Canada'

In calling for India's cooperation into its allegations of a potential Indian link to the killing of a Khalistani leader on its soil, Canada has not provided any "specific and relevant information" to New Delhi for it to act upon, the government informed Parliament on Friday. Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said in Lok Sabha that the government has conveyed to Canada its "concerns" over activities of anti-India elements in that country and requested Ottawa to take action against such elements besides denying space to them. The government has rejected the allegations of its involvement in "any act of violence" in Canada, he said replying to a question. In September, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made an explosive allegation of a "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil on June 18. India has strongly rejected the charges. "The government has rejected the allegations of the ...

Threats on Indian Parliament by Pannun taken up with US, Canada: Govt

Pannun, who is a designated terrorist by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in a recent video, threatened to attack Parliament on or before December 13

Probe panel constituted on US inputs: Jaishankar on Pannun plot case

India has constituted an inquiry committee to look into the inputs received from the US as these have a bearing on the country's national security, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, days after Washington alleged an Indian link to a foiled plot to kill a Sikh separatist on its soil. Replying to a supplementary question on the US charges, the minister said it was not directly connected to the original question which was on the foreign visits of Union ministers. "Insofar as the US is concerned, certain inputs were given to us as part of our security cooperation with the United States. Those inputs were of concern to us because they (were) related to the nexus of organised crime, trafficking and other matters. "Because they have a bearing on our own national security, it was decided to institute an inquiry into the matter and an inquiry committee has been constituted," he said. The minister was also asked why there was no equitable treatment with

NIA may take up Khalistani terrorist Pannun issue during FBI chief's visit

It is expected that Wray will meet officials of both the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as well as NIA here in the national capital during his India visit, said sources

Pro-Khalistan separatist Pannun threatens attack on Parliament on Dec 13

In a video, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun featured a poster of Afzal Guru, who was convicted for 2001 Parliament attack, with the caption 'Delhi Banega Khalistan'