New Delhi:
India has rejected allegations against National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and former Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) chief Samant Goel in a civil lawsuit filed by Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in a US court, describing the claims as “fabricated and malicious” and dismissing the legal proceedings as frivolous. New Delhi’s response came after the US State Department confirmed that it had formally transmitted court-issued summonses to the Indian government through diplomatic channels.
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said today that India strongly rejected the allegations directed at its senior officials as well as the lawsuit itself.
“We reject the fabricated and malicious attacks on our high officials. Also we reject the frivolous lawsuits. A request for serving of judicial documents in India can only be routed through India’s designated central authority that is the Ministry of Law and Justice,” Jaiswal said.
According to the US State Department, the documents were transmitted to the Indian Embassy in Washington DC through diplomatic channels on October 9, following the signing of a diplomatic note on September 30, 2026.
The State Department’s note referred to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), the US legislation governing the circumstances in which foreign states and certain state-linked entities or officials can be subjected to legal proceedings before American courts.
“The Department has no discretion in carrying out this request from the District Court under the FSIA,” the diplomatic note stated.
The civil lawsuit was filed by Pannun, who serves as legal counsel for Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), a separatist organisation banned in India. He is seeking damages over an alleged conspiracy to assassinate him in the United States and has accused senior Indian officials, including National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and former R&AW chief Samant Goel, of orchestrating the purported plot.
Pannun is wanted by investigative agencies in connection with various terrorism-related charges. New Delhi has consistently opposed the activities of SFJ, which has been designated a banned organisation in India.
The allegations in the American lawsuit are linked to a separate criminal investigation launched by US authorities into an alleged attempt to arrange Pannun’s killing in New York. The case attracted considerable attention in November 2023, when prosecutors in the US charged Indian national Nikhil Gupta with allegedly working alongside an individual described as an Indian government employee to organise the assassination attempt.
According to the US prosecution, the alleged conspiracy involved efforts to arrange the killing of Pannun on American soil. Gupta was accused of working with the unnamed individual in the purported operation, which US authorities said was foiled before it could be carried out.
The criminal case and Pannun’s subsequent civil lawsuit are separate legal proceedings, although both concern allegations surrounding the same purported assassination plot.
