US court issues summons in Pannun's case against India, Doval

Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has filed a civil lawsuit against the Government of India and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, with a US court issuing summons in the case.

In New Delhi, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Thursday described as completely "unwarranted and unsubstantiated" imputations the lawsuit filed by Pannun, who heads the radical group Sikhs for Justice.

"As we've said earlier, these are completely unwarranted and unsubstantiated imputations. Now that this particular case has been lodged, it doesn't change our views about the underlying situation. I would only invite your attention to the person behind this particular case whose antecedents are well known," Misri told the media.

The summons issued by the US district court for the southern district of New York in the civil action lawsuit state that a response to the summons must be given within 21 days.

This comes just days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the US from September 21-23 during which he will attend the Quad Leaders' Summit and address the UN's Summit of the Future.

The lawsuit has been filed against the Government of India and Doval and Nikhil Gupta, who has been charged by federal prosecutors in an indictment unsealed in November last year with working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Pannun, who holds dual US and Canadian citizenships, on American soil.

Gupta was extradited to the US from the Czech Republic in June and made his first appearance in Manhattan federal court before Magistrate Judge James Cott. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The lawsuit filed on September 17 alleges that the Modi government engaged Gupta to hire an assassin in New York to murder him.

The 28-page complaint also refers to the death of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. It claims that "these efforts" were overseen by Vikram Yadav, named in the lawsuit and described as a Senior Intelligence Officer in India's Research and Analysis Wing. They were approved by the chief of R&AW Samant and Doval, both of whom have been named in the lawsuit.

"The US captured and indicted Gupta. But the Government of India denies responsibility,” the lawsuit said, adding that Pannun brings this action to hold the Government of India, Doval, Goel, Yadav, and Gupta, "accountable for their unprecedented attempt to assassinate a US citizen on US soil.”

The complaint says that those named in the lawsuit ”should be required to compensate” Pannun ”for the harm they caused and are continuing to cause him and explain their role in the assassination plot.”

"I would also underline the fact that the organisation -- so-called that this person represents -- is an unlawful organisation, has been declared as such under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act of 1967 and it has been done so on account of its involvement in anti-national and subversive activities aimed at disrupting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India," Misri said at a press conference in response to a question on the lawsuit.