Pro-Khalistan leader says India running global assassination campaign to kill Sikh activists on Western soil

ISLAMABAD: Pro-Khalistan leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun launched a fierce attack on the Indian government, accusing it of orchestrating a global campaign of assassinations and intimidation against Sikh activists on Western soil.

His remarks come on the heels of a dramatic development in New York, where an Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy charges tied to a plot to assassinate Pannun in Manhattan. US prosecutors alleged that Gupta coordinated with an Indian government employee in arranging the attempted hit.

US Attorney Jay Clayton said following the plea, in what observers view as a pointed warning to New Delhi, “Our message to nefarious foreign actors should be clear: steer clear of the United States and our people.”

According to court filings and statements by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the plot involved direction from an Indian official, raising serious concerns in Washington about foreign-sponsored violence targeting US citizens and residents.

“A state-sponsored killing machine”

In a blistering exclusive interview with Pakistan TV, Pannun alleged that the evidence presented in US federal court “speaks loudly” and directly implicates the office of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in authorising and funding assassination plots abroad.

“After making Punjab a killing field in the 1980s and 1990s, India is now exporting violence,” Pannun said. “They are sending hitmen to America, Canada, and the UK to silence the Khalistan referendum movement.”

He linked the New York plot to the 2023 killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada, describing it as part of what he called a coordinated campaign to eliminate prominent voices advocating Sikh self-determination. Canadian officials have previously acknowledged investigating credible allegations of Indian involvement in Nijjar’s death.

Pannun further alleged that Khalistan activists in the United Kingdom, including Paramjit Singh Pamma, have also been targeted.

Diplomatic backlash mounts

The guilty plea in New York has intensified scrutiny of India’s actions abroad and fueled diplomatic unease across Western capitals. The idea that a foreign government could attempt to carry out assassinations in the United States has sparked bipartisan concern in Washington.

Security analysts describe the alleged plot as part of a broader pattern of “transnational repression,” in which governments pursue critics beyond their borders.

For Pannun, the case represents what he calls a turning point.

“They tried to label us terrorists. When we turned to ballots instead of bullets, they answered with bullets again,” he said. “But the world is watching now.”