US indictment links India to plot to murder Sikh activist in New York

US prosecutors have accused an agent of the Indian government of directing the attempted assassination of an American citizen on US soil, according to a superseding indictment released by the Department of Justice, which revealed new details about India's alleged targeting of Sikh activists around the world.

- Stephanie Kirchgaessner

The indictment also provided new evidence that the Indian agent - who is not named - ordered the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh activist who was shot dead outside a Sikh temple in British Columbia in June. 

The Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, said in September there were "credible allegations" that agents of the Indian government had carried out the assassination of Nijjar.

The allegations were denied by India, which called the claims "absurd" and politically motivated.

The US indictment appears to confirm, however, evidence of a global plot allegedly orchestrated in India to silence and kill outspoken critics of the Indian government who support the creation of an independent Sikh state. The Department of Justice has not named the Indian government official - whom it refers to as CC-1 in the indictment and says previously served in India's Central Reserve police force.

It has charged another individual, Nikhil Gupta, 52, of working with the Indian agent. Gupta, an Indian national, is described as a "close associate" of CC-1, and has allegedly described his involvement in international drug and weapons trafficking.

He was arrested and detained on 30 June in the Czech Republic and is being extradited to the US.