Foiled Indian plot to assassinate the Sikh leader Gurpatwant Singh in US continues to make headlines in International forums and media. This issue also came under discussion during a recent congressional hearing in US. It was reported by Bloomberg that India had shared the outcome of investigations which revealed the involvement of a rogue government officials. Now, US is demanding prompt and transparent conclusion of the matter.
It seems that India is trying to cover-up the involvement of state players by scapegoating the official tagged rogue. Finding glory in illegal acts has become a practice for the Modi government. Cold blooded assassination of dissenting Sikh leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar created more ripples internationally when Canada officially intimated the involvement of Indian government in international assassination plot. Disclosure was too big for India to trivialize because none other than the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau himself spoke about the shocking incident.
Suit was followed by international players including Australia, US, UK, and EU who always supported Canadian stance and asked India to cooperate in the inquiry. How contentiously India responded to these accusations is itself a self-explanatory package of proofs endorsing the Canadian view point. Hawks sitting in New Dehli tried to replay the Hardeep Singh Nijjar assassination plot against Gurpatwant Singh in US. Hardeep Singh Nijjar lost life in the hands of Indian sponsored assassins and subsequent investigations exposed the role of Delhi based handlers. Things unfolded differently in case of Gurpatwant Singh because US agencies probably had fair clue about Indian assassination series aimed at dissenting Sikh leaders.
Apparently trap laid by vigilant US agency worked effectively once an Indian Nikhil Gupta hired a hitman to assassinate the Sikh leader in US. Indian plan busted with a bang once Nikhil Gupta was charged formally as accused of conspiring the murder of a US citizen on American soil on the behest of an Indian handler. Hitman hired by Nikhil Gupta was reportedly an undercover agent. The handler who happened to be an intelligence officer based in Delhi is undoubtedly a state actor whereas the intended target, Gurpatwant Singh, a dual US-Canadian citizen, is a senior figure in the rights group “Sikhs for Justice”. Reportedly, Gupta and his handler planned to assassinate the Gurpatwant Singh through a foreign based hitman. Gupta hired the hitman and gave him a down payment of $15,000 against the overall contract of $ 1,00,000. Interestingly, the hired hitman was actually an undercover agent of the US Drug Enforcement Agency.
Gupta managed to flee the US after making the down payment, he was later apprehended in the Czech Republic and his extradition under a bilateral agreement is expected soon. Matter of such grave nature was under discussion between the US and Indian intelligence counterparts. Indian media have been reporting that the slain Hardeep and survived Gurpatwant Singh were alleged for terrorism by New Delhi. As reported in US media, accused Indian citizen Nikhil Gupta has been involved in narcotics and weapons trafficking. Such blatant disclosures about targeted killings of dissenting figures having the nationality of host country is enough of evidence on rogue methods of Indian state actors. Contradicting the claims of being the largest democracy of the world; India under Modi’s rule has rapidly transformed in a rogue extremist state.
BJP and its militant sister organizations are pursuing the conversion of India in a Hindu Rashter. Crack down on Sikh dissenting quarters is not an exclusive phenomenon rather systematic atrocities against religious minorities have taken deeper roots as a policy tool in Indian playbook. Pakistan has been repeatedly pointing out Indian state sponsored terrorism at regional and diplomatic forums. Horrific tales of Indian state sponsored violence and genocidal brutalities against religious minorities are visible in Manipur, Punjab, Kashmir and rest of the Hindu dominated states. Recurrence of assassination attempts through hired hitmen on the soil of ally countries reflect the doubts on questionable credibility of India.
Arrest of Nikhil Gupta for a foiled assassination plot on US soil and targeted killing of Hardeep Singh in Canada have substantiated the truth revealed by Kulbhushan Jadhav about RAW sponsored terrorist networks operating in Pakistan. Emerging pattern of Indian state actors’ involvement in trans-nation assassinations on foreign soil merits the toughest possible accountability. Query raised by US congressman about possible sanctions on rogue Indian officials merit more deliberation. Matter which actually merits probe is, whether the RAW officials went rogue or Indian state is now scapegoating them to hide her original sin?
