Last month, the court summons issued by the U.S. State Department has now been received by the Indian government. This is the summons in a civil lawsuit filed by Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who has been designated a terrorist by India’s Ministry of Home Affairs.
What is the issue?
Following reports that Nikhil Gupta, an Indian national, had plotted to kill him, Pannun, the legal adviser to the ‘Sikhs for Justice’ (SFJ) organization, filed this case in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

In this case, Pannun has also mentioned the names of Indian officials, including India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and former head of the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW), Samant Goel. Pannun alleges that they too were involved in the murder conspiracy.
It is noteworthy that the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs declared the SFJ organization an unlawful organization under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in 2019.
Nikhil Gupta...
In the Pannun case, Nikhil Gupta was arrested in Prague in June 2023 and extradited to the United States.
In this case, Gupta pleaded guilty in February 2026 to three charges, including attempted murder-for-hire, murder conspiracy, and conspiracy to launder money illegally.

What now?
In connection with the Pannun case, the U.S. Department of State sent the diplomatic note signed on September 30, 2026, to the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C., on October 9, 2026.
Later, the U.S. Department of State confirmed on October 28 that a summons had been sent to the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C.
The U.S. State Department sent this diplomatic note to the Indian Embassy as a matter of routine procedure.
By sending this note, the U.S. State Department has made it clear that it has not taken any particular position in this ongoing civil case.
What does the Indian government say?
Regarding the allegations against Indian officials, including Ajit Doval, Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We completely reject the false and malicious allegations made against senior Indian officials.
Likewise, we refuse to accept these futile... meaningless cases as well,” he said.
