United States: Czech authorities extradite Indian citizen involved in attempted assassination of Sikh leader

Czech authorities have extradited to the United States an Indian citizen suspected of involvement in a failed plot to assassinate a U.S.-based Sikh separatist leader. The United States Federal Prison Agency reported this via a notice published on its website. The suspect, Nikhil Guptais accused by US prosecutors of planning the murder of the Sikh separatist leader in collaboration with an Indian government official. Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. Gupta traveled from India to Prague in June last year and was arrested by Czech authorities on a US court warrant. Last month, a court in the European country rejected the Indian citizen’s request against his extradition to the United States. As of yesterday, Gupta has been detained at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center in New York.

The United States is satisfied, for the moment, with the initiatives taken by the Indian authorities concerning the alleged plot to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, leader of the Khalistan movement, which aims to create a sovereign Sikh state in Punjab. The US ambassador to New Delhi said last month: Eric Garcetti, during an event organized in Washington by the think tank Council on Foreign Relations. Garcetti commented on the impact on bilateral relations of the assassinations of Sikh separatist leaders in the United States and Canada, which the Canadian government openly blamed on Indian intelligence services last year. “(In the past) I’ve talked about a relationship that might encounter some bumps along the way, and this could potentially become the first major dispute in the relationship” between the United States and India, the ambassador admitted , but he added: “So far, knock on wood, I would say that the (US presidential) administration is satisfied with the accountability that we have asked for on this issue, because it is a red line for the America and for our citizens.” Garcetti noted that the Indian government has created a commission to investigate plots to kill Sikh separatist leaders in North America. “We are waiting (…) for a sharing of information, and so far we are satisfied with what they have done. I believe the administration is, although there are still many steps to be taken,” the ambassador said. Last November, U.S. authorities indicted an Indian citizen, Nikhil Gupta, for an alleged plot with an Indian official to assassinate Pannun, but it failed. Pannun, wanted as a terrorist in India, has dual American and Canadian nationality.

In recent weeks, the Indian government has called “once again on the Government of Canada to stop providing criminal and secessionist elements with safe haven and political space.” This is indicated in a press release published on May 7 by the spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Randhir Jaiswal. The ministry thus ruled on a procession (Nagar Kirtan) in the Canadian city of Mississauga, in the district of Malton, during which “the celebration and glorification of violence” would be authorized. “Democratic countries that respect the rule of law should not allow intimidation by radical elements in the name of freedom of expression,” says New Delhi. “We remain concerned about the safety of our diplomatic representatives in Canada and we expect the Government of Canada to ensure that they are able to carry out their responsibilities without fear,” adds the spokesperson.

As reported by the Indian press, during the event organized by the Ontario Gurdwara Committee (OGC), a committee representing around twenty Sikh places of worship located in Ontario and Quebec, flags of Khalistan, the homeland for which of the groups are fighting the Sikhs. separatists, tanks and messages targeting Indian political figures, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, photographed behind bars. Speeches were also delivered by Paramjit Mand and Avtar Singh Pannu, representatives of organizations, respectively Dal Khalsa and Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), banned in India.

A few days earlier, on April 29, the same ministry had summoned the Canadian deputy ambassador in New Delhi, to whom it had expressed the Indian government’s “deep concern and strong protest” in the face of the slogans launched by the Sikh separatist activists (supporters of Khalistan) during the demonstration. an event attended by the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau. Concerns and protests were expressed “that such disturbing actions were allowed to continue unchecked during the event,” the statement said, adding that the episode “once again highlights the political space which has been granted to Canada to separatism, extremism and violence. “Their continued expressions not only impact India-Canada relations, but also encourage a climate of violence and criminality in Canada to the detriment of its own citizens,” he said in a statement.

The incident in question occurred the day before in Toronto during a gathering for the Sikh holiday of Vaisakh, or Khalsa Day, organized by the Ontario Sikhs and Gurdwaras Council (OSGC). Prime Minister Trudeau delivered a speech to the community of Canadians of Sikh culture, which numbers approximately 800 thousand people, assuring that Canada counts diversity and non-discrimination among its strengths. The Canadian organization Cpac – Observatory for Democracy published a video in which pro-Khalistan chants can be heard in the background. India has repeatedly protested against demonstrations by these Sikh separatist activists, present mainly abroad, in front of its diplomatic offices in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States, where the largest Sikh communities are located.

Meanwhile, on May 3, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested three Indian citizens for the murder of the Canadian Sikh activist. Hardeep Singh Nijjar, occurred on June 18, 2023 in Surrey, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The three – identified as Kamalpreet Singh, Karan Brar e Karampreet Singh – are all residents of Edmonton, Alberta. Nijiar, a leader of the local Sikh community, designated as a terrorist by the Indian government as head of the militant group Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF), was shot dead by two men with his face covered while he was in his car , in the parking lot. much from the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara. The newspaper “The Washington Post”, relying on videos and testimonies, revealed that it was a large and organized operation, in which at least six men participated and in which at least two vehicles were been used.

India’s foreign ministry has not issued a statement. The ambassador in Ottawa, Sanjay Verma, made no comment, calling the problem “internal to Canada”. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, a day after the arrests, while interacting with the press at an event in Bhubaneswar, said the suspects “are apparently Indians belonging to some sort of gang” and that he was awaiting information from the police. On the occasion, he reiterated his criticism of Canada for “allowing organized crime, particularly from Punjab, to operate” and added that a part of the pro-Khalistan people are using Canadian democracy by creating a lobby that has become a reservoir of votes, as reported by the “Press Trust of India” (“PTI”) agency.

Nijjar’s assassination opened a serious diplomatic crisis between India and Canada, whose relations had already been marked in recent years by friction linked to the Sikh question. On September 18, Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau, during a parliamentary speech, publicly accused India of being involved in the murder, based on “credible evidence” available to Canadian security agencies. On September 19, India’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded by “categorically” rejecting the allegations and urging Canada to take action “against all anti-Indian elements operating on its territory.” On September 20, India issued a travel warning to Canada, and the next day BLS International suspended visa service, which was reinstated two months later.

Since October, at India’s request, the Canadian diplomatic representation in India has been reduced from 62 to 21 diplomats. “A unilateral withdrawal of diplomatic immunities and privileges is contrary to international law, in particular the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. This measure taken by India is totally unreasonable and aggravates the escalation,” accused the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Indian side responded by rejecting accusations of violation of the Convention and placing responsibility on the other side: “The state of bilateral relations, the much higher number of Canadian diplomats in India and their continued interference in our affairs internal values justify mutual equality. diplomacy of presence in New Delhi and Ottawa”.

In India, Sikhs represent less than 2011% of the population according to the last 60 census, but they are the majority (around 60%) in the state of Punjab, in the north of the country, created in 1966. The “Khalistan” movement, born towards the end of British rule, it developed in Punjab in the nineteen nineties and reached its peak in the nineteen nineties, while since the nineteen nineties it has declined, both due to police repression and internal divisions, although it has not completely disappeared, especially among expatriates. The borders of Khalistan vary according to the groups: the territory of the Sikhs could include both Indian and Pakistani Punjab but also parts of other Indian states, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan.

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