Indian national Nikhil Gupta has admitted guilt in a US court for his role in a plot to assassinate pro-Khalistan separatist and US citizen Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York City, marking a dramatic turn in a case that has drawn diplomatic ripples across continents.
Confirming the development, the US attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York said Gupta had pleaded guilty to charges linked to a murder-for-hire conspiracy.
“Nikhil Gupta plotted to assassinate a US citizen in New York City,” US attorney Jay Clayton told HT, “He thought that from outside this country he could kill someone in it without consequence, simply for exercising their American right to free speech. But he was wrong, and he will face justice.”
Gupta, 54, has remained in custody in Brooklyn without bail since his extradition from the Czech Republic in June 2024. He pleaded guilty to three counts: murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to US prosecutors, Gupta was allegedly enlisted into the plot by an individual identified in court documents as “CC-1”, described as a “Senior Field Officer” responsible for “security management” and “intelligence”. The indictment states that this person contacted Gupta in May 2023 and engaged him to arrange the killing of a “vocal critic of the Indian government” who “leads a US-based organisation that advocates for the secession of Punjab”.
The intended target was later identified in media reports as Pannun, who holds dual US and Canadian citizenship and heads Sikhs for Justice, an organisation banned in India.
US authorities subsequently named “CC-1” as Vikash Yadav, a former Central Reserve Police Force officer who, at the time of the alleged conspiracy, was said to be working in India’s cabinet secretariat, which houses the Research and Analysis Wing, according to the indictment.
The US justice department formally charged Yadav in October 2024. He remains in India and has not been arrested. Separately, the Delhi Police have registered an extortion case against him.
After Yadav was formally indicted, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “The US State Department informed us that the individual in the Justice Department indictment is no longer employed by India. I confirm that he is no longer an employee of the Government of India.”
Prosecutors allege that Gupta sought to operationalise the plot by contacting a person he believed to be a criminal associate to hire a contract killer. That individual was in fact a confidential source working with US agencies and directed Gupta to an undercover law enforcement officer posing as a hitman.
Acting on Yadav’s instructions, Gupta allegedly agreed to pay $100,000 for the killing and handed over $15,000 in advance in June 2023.
Authorities have also linked the alleged conspiracy to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada’s British Columbia. Nijjar, a pro-Khalistan separatist declared a terrorist by India, was shot dead outside a gurdwara.
The indictment recounts exchanges following Nijjar’s death. “On or about June 19, 2023, the day after the Nijjar murder, Gupta told the UC that Nijjar ‘was also the target’ and ‘we have so many targets.’ Gupta added that, in light of Nijjar’s murder, there was ‘now no need to wait’ on killing the Victim. On or about June 20, 2023, Yadav sent Gupta a news article about the victim and messaged Gupta, ‘[i]t’s
Canada later alleged that India was linked both to Nijjar’s killing and to the alleged plot against Pannun. India has rejected any involvement in either case. New Delhi has described the Canadian allegations as “absurd” and said Ottawa did not share proof to substantiate its claims.
In response to US concerns, the Indian government said it treated American “inputs” seriously and constituted a high-level probe panel in November 2023.
“After a long enquiry, the committee has submitted its report to the government and recommended legal action against an individual, whose earlier criminal links and antecedents also came to notice during the enquiry,” the ministry of home affairs said in January 2025.
The panel, led by a senior National Security Council official, also recommended “functional improvements” to strengthen procedures and ensure proper systems while handling such matters.
Gupta now faces the possibility of a lengthy prison term. He could receive a combined maximum sentence of 40 years in jail, though a Reuters report said he may face around 20 to 24 years under recommended federal sentencing guidelines.
He is scheduled to be sentenced by US District Judge Victor Marrero on May 29.
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