WASHINGTON: An Indian suspected by the US of involvement in an unsuccessful Indian government-backed plot to kill a Sikh separatist on American soil pleaded not guilty to murder-for-hire conspiracy charges in federal court in Manhattan.
Nikhil Gupta has been accused by US federal prosecutors of plotting with an Indian government official to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US resident who advocated for a sovereign Sikh state in northern India.
Last June, Gupta traveled to Prague from India and was arrested by Czech authorities. A Czech court last month rejected his petition to avoid being sent to the US. He was extradited to the US on Friday last, Czech Justice Minister Pavel Blazek said.
At a hearing in Manhattan, US Magistrate Judge James Cott ordered Gupta, 52, detained at least until the next conference in his case on June 28. Gupta is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, US Bureau of Prisons records showed.
The discovery of alleged assassination plots against Sikh separatists in the US and Canada has tested relations with India. New Delhi denies involvement in such plots.
In a statement after the hearing, Pannun called Gupta a "foot soldier" and said he was confident that the US justice system would also hold the Indian officials who hired him accountable. Indian government has dissociated itself from the plot against Pannun, saying it was against government policy. It has said it would formally investigate security concerns raised by Washington.
New Delhi has long complained about Sikh separatist groups outside India, viewing them as security threats. The groups have kept alive the movement for Khalistan, or the demand for an independent Sikh state to be carved out of India. Last month, Washington said it was satisfied so far with India's moves to ensure accountability in the alleged plots, but added that many steps still needed to be taken.
