Senior officials of the highly controversial Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) of India apparently approved the alleged assassination plot to get rid of the US soil-based Sikh independence leader and a well-known international figure, i.e. Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
The Washington Post’s investigation attributed the order to assassinate Pannun to Samant Goel, the former RAW chief, and he named Vikram Yadav as an officer in the intelligence agency who was leading the plot.
The story goes, according to the report, that Yadav, former officer of Indian intelligence, became a messenger that communicated “final instructions to a hired hit team” to kill the Sikh leader who, according to PM Narendra Modi of India, was his most critical opponent.
The results trace back to the time when Modi was in the US and was sitting alongside President Joe Biden in the White House during their dinner in June 2023.
Pannun, Sikh For Justice’s (SFJ) legal consultant and an influential leader in the community, has been targeted for assassination, most recently after the death of Hardeep Singh Nijjar on June 18, 2023.
Pannun, like murdered Canadian Nijjhar, have been calling for a separate Sikh state for their community living in India and have been declared a “terrorists” by Indian government.
Panun stated in an interview last year that he was not afraid and is not distracted by the plot of India exposing him.
“Just like the killing of Canadian Citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar by the agents of India on Canadian territory poses a question as to the validity of Canada’s sovereignty, the threat to an American citizen on American territory challenges the sovereignty of the United States, and I believe that the Biden Administration has the necessary competence to handle such matter,” he said when answering a reporter’s question during an interview.
For the, sorry, of the United States. So we are pursuing an ambitious agenda to expand our cooperation and some in several areas. As you know, we’ve been really consistent about that and have laid that out multiple times. Whether it’s a meeting here with with the prime minister or a meeting abroad.
However, the plot of his deadly assassination — designed to perfection by India — has “dumbfounded Western security officials”. The Washington Post said this.
“Yadav’s identity and affiliation, which have been previously concealed, are the most direct evidence to date that the assassination plan — eventually blocked by U.S. authorities — was orchestrated by the Indian spy service,” the publication put it in a nutshell.
In a revelation reported by the current and former intelligence officials from the west the top RAW officials have been “implicated” after a thorough investigation into the issue run by the Central Intelligence Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation and other agencies which chart links of the scheme to Indian premier’s “inner circle”.
The US newspaper, owned by US businessman and tech guru Jeff Bezos, has just announced that it’s investigating a “global rise in this type of campaigns of cross-border repression, along with the global factors leading India and other states to adopt tactics commonly used by the world’s most repressive governments.”
White House takes report with utmost seriousness.
However, the White House continued to claim that it was taking the Washington Post story in a very serious manner.
During the Monday briefing, the White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Department of Justice is investigating the issue.
“There is already a probe, isn’t it?” And that is the reason why when I was answering your question the Department of Justice of course is dealing with this. In that regard, I would have to refer you to the DOJ. Hey, India is a key strategic partner for us, Americans.
This is a serious matter, and we’re taking that very, very seriously. The government of India has been very clear with us that they are taking this seriously and will investigate. And we expect that that accountability from the government based on that.”
