US Court Summons India's Ajit Doval and Former RAW Chief in Pannun Assassination Plot Lawsuit

A US court has issued summonses to India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, popularly known as the country's "James Bond," and former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) chief Samant Goel in connection with a civil lawsuit filed by Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

The summonses were delivered to the two Indian officials through the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

The legal action is part of a civil lawsuit filed by Pannun, a prominent leader of the banned pro-Khalistan group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), who is wanted by Indian authorities. Both Doval and Goel have been named as defendants in the case.

According to the complaint, Doval allegedly used RAW to orchestrate a plot to assassinate Pannun. The plaintiff is seeking damages over the alleged assassination attempt.

The lawsuit is civil in nature.

The Indian government designated Pannun a terrorist and declared his organization, Sikhs for Justice, an unlawful association several years ago. The organization and its members are associated with the Khalistan movement and have an active presence in the United States and Canada. Indian authorities have accused the group of inciting violence against Indian diplomats and threatening attacks in India.

The Khalistan movement seeks to establish an independent Sikh state called Khalistan by separating it from India. Before declining in the 1990s, the movement fueled a decades-long bloody insurgency in Punjab. Since then, various factions and leaders associated with the movement have sought refuge abroad, particularly in Canada, from where they have continued their separatist activities.

Pannun's civil lawsuit comes amid a separate investigation by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) into an alleged plot to assassinate him.

The latest civil case stems primarily from the DOJ's investigation into Indian national Nikhil Gupta, who was accused of involvement in a conspiracy to hire a contract killer to assassinate Pannun. Gupta was arrested in the Czech Republic in 2023 and subsequently extradited to the United States.

The US Justice Department alleged that Gupta conspired with others, including Vikas Yadav, who was reportedly associated with India's external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing, at the time, to carry out the assassination plot.

Earlier this year, Gupta pleaded guilty to all charges against him. He is expected to be sentenced later this month.

Meanwhile, the Indian government has established a committee to investigate the allegations raised by the US government regarding the assassination conspiracy. A separate case against Yadav is also pending before an Indian court.

However, India has dismissed Pannun's civil lawsuit as "unreasonable and baseless."