Who is Vikash Yadav, ‘former Indian spy’ accused by US of plotting to kill Pannun?

Amid the India-Canada row over the killing of Khalistani Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the name of the former Indian government, who was previously indicted for the assassination attempt on Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil, has been revealed to be Vikash Yadav.

The naming of the official came after a second superseding indictment was unsealed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. US prosecutors announced the “filing of murder-for-hire and money laundering charges against Indian government employee VIKASH Yadav, aka “Vikas,” aka “Amanat,” in connection with his role in directing a foiled plot to assassinate a US citizen in New York City”, said a statement from the US Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York.

The naming of Yadav comes months after the first indictment stated that an Indian official, CC-1, was involved in the attempt to assassinate Khalistani Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on US soil. Notably, both the indictments do not name Pannun as the victim; the second one reads, “victim is a vocal critic of the government of India and leads a US-based organisation that advocates for the secession of Punjab”.

Yadav has now been put on the US’ Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) wanted list and said that “a federal arrest warrant after he was charged with murder-for-hire, conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and money laundering conspiracy”.

Let’s take a closer look at who exactly is Yadav and what was his role in the attempted assassination of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

Who is Vikash Yadav?

According to the second indictment, Yadav is a citizen and resident of India. He was earlier employed by India’s Cabinet Secretariat, which also comprises India’s spy agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW).

The indictment states that Yadav was a ‘senior field officer’ having responsibilities, including ‘security management and intelligence’. Yadav also served in the Central Reserve Police Force and his last rank was that of Assistant Commandant, commanding a 135-man company. Yadav has reported receiving counterintelligence, battlecraft, weapons and paratrooper training.

The FBI provided more details on Yadav, describing him as a 39-year-old, with a height of 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet 1 inches, weighing approximately 175 pounds (about 79 kgs) and having black hair and brown eyes. He was born in Haryana’s Pranpura, said the FBI.

What was Yadav’s role in Pannun assassination plot?

The new indictment provides explosive details outlining out how Yadav planned and attempted to assassinate Pannun in May 2023. It states that Yadav recruited Indian national Nikhil Gupta — who was earlier extradited from the Czech Republic to the US — to orchestrate the assassination of Pannun. It was allegedly on Yadav’s directions that Gupta contacted an individual for assistance in hiring a hitman to murder Pannun in New York.

A month later, Yadav provided Gupta with information about Pannun, including that of his New York home, phone numbers, and even details about his day-to-day activities.

The indictment reads, “On or about June 18, 2023, approximately two days before the Indian Prime Minister’s state visit to the United States, masked gunmen murdered Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside a Sikh temple in British Columbia, Canada. Following that, Gupta said that Nijjar ‘was also the target’ and ‘we have so many targets’.”

Gupta added, as per the indictment, that, in light of Nijjar’s murder, there was “now no need to wait” to kill Pannun. On or about June 20, 2023, Yadav sent Gupta a news article about the Pannun and messaged Gupta, “It’s a priority now.”

Shortly after, Gupta reached out to the man they were using to contact the hitman, directing him to find the “right opportunity” to kill Pannun and do it “quickly”. In the coming days, Yadav and Gupta kept up their conversations on the plot to murder Pannun.

However, the plot did unfold and on June 30, 2023, Gupta, who had travelled to the Czech Republic from the US was arrested there.

What have US officials said?

While an indictment doesn’t mean the charges are proven, it is significant for a number of reasons.

Damian Williams , the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, was quoted as saying, “Last year, this office charged Nikhil Gupta for conspiring to assassinate a US citizen of Indian origin on US soil. But, as alleged, Gupta did not work alone. Today, we announce charges against an Indian government employee, Vikash Yadav, who orchestrated the plot from India and directed Gupta to hire a hitman to murder the victim. The right to exercise free speech is foundational to our democracy, and predicated on the notion that we can do so without fear of violence or reprisal, including from beyond our borders. Let this case be a warning to all those who would seek to harm and silence US citizens: We will hold you accountable, no matter who and where you are.”

Adding to this, FBI director Christopher A Wray said: “The defendant, an Indian government employee, allegedly conspired with a criminal associate and attempted to assassinate a US citizen on American soil for exercising their First Amendment rights. The FBI will not tolerate acts of violence or other efforts to retaliate against those residing in the US for exercising their constitutionally protected rights. We are committed to working with our partners to detect, disrupt, and hold accountable foreign nationals or others who seek to engage in such acts of transnational repression.”

What happens next?

Earlier, India had announced that it was taking these allegations seriously and had established a high-level inquiry committee to look into this matter.

Notably, members of this committee met with officials in Washington earlier this week and apprised them of their probe. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday that India’s dispatch of a team to Washington to talk to US law enforcement is “a sign that they’re taking this [investigation] seriously.”

On Thursday, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the person mentioned in the Justice Department indictment was no longer an employee of the Indian government.

Currently, the whereabouts of Yadav are unknown. His future remains on shaky grounds with him being identified and charged by the US.

With inputs from agencies