“Want to see India conducting full investigation”: US spokesperson on Gurpatwant Singh Pannun case
Gurpatwant Singh Pannun case: The US Department of State reaffirmed its dedication to thoroughly investigate the purported foiled assassination attempt targeting India-designated terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. The department emphasized that it has communicated this commitment to the Indian government as well.
The US State Department, when questioned about whether the US had received a report regarding India's internal inquiry into the matter, spokesperson Mathew Miller declined to provide specifics. He emphasized that the department is awaiting the outcome of the investigation conducted by the Indian authorities.
"So I'm not going to speak to media reports. I will just say that we have made clear to the Government of India that we want to see them conduct a full investigation, and we continue to look forward to the results of that investigation, but I don't have any updates to offer," Miller said.
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The US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti acknowledged that India and the United States are working together in the investigation of the alleged foiled assassination plot against Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
He also emphasised that a 'red line' should not be crossed and no government employee of any country can be involved in an assassination plot of a foreign citizen.
"I think that's absolutely critical. For any of us, just abstractly, that has to be a red line. No government or government employee can be involved in the alleged assassination of one of your own citizens. That's just an unacceptable red line," Garcetti had said.
"Any country, having an active member of their government involved in a second country trying to assassinate one of their citizens. That's, I think, usually a red line for any country. That's a basic issue of sovereignty. That's a basic issue of rights," he added.
As per the US Justice Department indictment, an Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, who is currently in custody, has been charged with the murder-for-hire of Pannun. The US Justice Department had claimed that an Indian government employee, who was not identified in the indictment filed, had recruited Gupta to hire a hitman to allegedly assassinate Pannun, which was foiled by US authorities.
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The US envoy also appreciated that India had set up an inquiry commission to look into the matter.
(With inputs from agencies)