Video of Nikhil Gupta, Man Accused in Gurpatwant Pannun ‘Murder’ Case Goes Viral; Nikhil Pleads Not Guilty

The videos featuring an Indian national, Nikhil Gupta, went viral as the Czech Republic Police shared them on Monday.

Notably, Nikhil Gupta was accused of being a part of murdering Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh extremist inside the territory of America, reported TOI.

The 52-year-old Nikhil Gupta was extradited from the Czech Republic to the US on June 14, Friday. This occurred after his arrest a year ago in Prague. 

The Czech Republic Police shared a video on the social media platform X writing, “The foreigner suspected in the United States of an assassination plot has been in the hands of the US judiciary since Friday.”

The post added, “Nikhil Gupta was safely extradited from a Prague airport.” The post had images and videos of Nikhil where his face was blurred. He can be spotted escorted onto a plane in the video. 

Pavel Blazek, the Czech justice minister, earlier confirmed that the 52-year-old had been extradited to the US.

Pavel Blazek in a post on X wrote, “Based on my decision on (June 3), Indian citizen Nikhil Gupta, who is suspected of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire with intent to cause death, was extradited to the US on Friday (June 14) for criminal prosecution.”

What Happened?

On June 30, 2023, at the Prague airport, the 52-year-old accused was detained. It was done under extradition orders, according to the US Justice Department.

According to the US Justice Department, the Indian national “is a vocal critic of the Indian government and leads a US-based organization that advocates for the secession of Punjab”.

The ministry of External Affairs has announced that a “high-level” committee will be set up to investigate the case. 

Nikhil Gupta’s extradition was approved by the constitutional court of the Czech in May 2024. 

Nikhil Gupta Pleads Not Guilty in US Court

According to Jeffrey Chabrowe, Gupta’s attorney, in federal court in New York, Gupta pleaded not guilty.

The US alleged that Gupta worked as per an unidentified Indian government official’s orders. However, India clearly denied its involvement in the case.

Prosecutors also alleged that a hitman was specially hired by Gupta to murder Pannun. Moreover, the former also paid the person USD 15,000 in advance. 

According to Deccan Herald, Gupta claimed that he was being charged unfairly. 

However, the Ministry of External Affairs of India disbanded the report by regarding it as “unwarranted and unsubstantiated imputations” to claims that Indian officials were involved in the case to murder Pannun.

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