Nikhil Gupta seeks dismissal of US charges over alleged plot to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.
NEW DELHI: Nikhil “Nick” Gupta, an Indian national accused of orchestrating a plot to assassinate U.S.-based Khalistani separatist and proscribed terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, has filed an emergency motion in a U.S. federal court demanding the dismissal of charges against him and his immediate release from custody.
The motion, submitted on May 22 and docketed on May 29, argues that the indictment underpinning his extradition from the Czech Republic is “legally defective” and fails to state a cognisable offense under U.S. law. In a handwritten, sevenpage pro se filing addressed to Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York, Gupta invoked his constitutional rights under the Fifth and Sixth Amendments.
He contends that the indictment, returned in October 2024—including charges of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, and conspiracy to commit money laundering—fails to allege a critical statutory element: the specific state or federal murder law that would have been violated had the plot been carried out.
“The indictment fails to allege an essential element with the degree of specificity necessary to state a violation,” Gupta’s motion states, emphasising that under 18 U.S.C. § 1958, the government must show the conduct would have constituted murder under U.S. law. Without such a predicate statute, he argues, the indictment is constitutionally insufficient and invalidates the legal basis for his extradition.
Gupta also asserts that the defective indictment denied him procedural due process during the extradition proceedings in Prague, leading to what he describes as a “complete miscarriage of justice.” Citing relevant case law— including United States v. Samia and United States v. Montague—Gupta, who is incarcerated at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, argues that similar indictments have previously been dismissed when they failed to specify the applicable predicate criminal statutes.
In addition to the alleged legal defects, Gupta contends that his prolonged detention—now exceeding 90 days without trial—violates the Speedy Trial Act. He blames the delay on the U.S. government’s “lack of diligent preparation,” asserting that this alone warrants his release on bail.
On April 11, the court held a hearing to address Gupta’s request to change his legal representation. Following that hearing, federal defenders Michael Rooney and Jennifer Brown were formally relieved, and the on-duty Criminal Justice Act (CJA) attorney Julian Brod was appointed in their place.
However, Brod withdrew on April 14, citing the case’s complexity and the condensed trial timeline. In response, the court appointed Matthew Laroche and Nola Heller, both seasoned CJA panel attorneys, to represent Gupta.
The court confirmed Gupta’s eligibility for court-appointed counsel based on financial grounds and instructed both parties to indicate whether they sought any changes to the pretrial schedule previously outlined by the U.S. government on March 26.
According to documents, the trial is set to begin on November 3 before Judge Marrero in New York. Jury selection is scheduled for that morning. Gupta was arrested in Prague in 2023 and extradited to the United States earlier this year. U.S. prosecutors allege that he worked with an Indian government employee to plan the assassination of Pannun in New York, offering a $100,000 payment and coordinating with undercover DEA agents posing as hitmen. Indian officials have denied any official involvement in the plot.