Ex-RAW official Vikash Yadav, ’wanted’ in Pannun case, was arrested for extortion in Lawrence Bishnoi’s name: Report

The FBI has issued a wanted poster for Vikash Yadav, a former Indian government employee, in connection with a foiled plot to assassinate Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US citizen.

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The Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that Yadav is no longer an employee of the Government of India. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that the US State Department had informed them of his status regarding the indictment in the assassination plot.

Meanwhile, as per a report by The Indian Express, Vikash Yadav was arrested last year by the Delhi Police Anti-Terror Wing’s Special Cell for extortion in November last year and spent several months in Tihar Jail before being released on bail in April.

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The investigation revealed that Yadav had posed as an undercover agent, meeting the complainant, Raj Kumar Walia, under the guise of a government official working for the National Investigation Agency (NIA). According to the FIR, Yadav met Walia outside the NIA office before kidnapping him and extorting money, News18 reported.

This arrest follows his alleged involvement in a foiled plot to assassinate Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

Here’s what FIR says…

According to the FIR, Vikash Yadav met Raj Kumar Walia, who operates a café and lounge in West Delhi’s Moti Nagar and resides in Rohini. Yadav, along with an associate named Abdullah, informed Walia of a serious threat to his safety and requested that he meet near the NIA office in Delhi on December 11 last year.

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“The complainant, along with his friend Abhijit, went to meet Vikash Yadav, who was present with the accused Abdullah. Thereafter, the accused Abdullah pushed him into the car. The accused persons tortured and manhandled the complainant and demanded money in the name of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi,” a court order quoted in the FIR states, as reported by News18.

Mint could not independently verify the development.

“The accused persons beat him, administered injections, and hit him on the back of his neck. They also took a bank cheque book from the complainant’s café and obtained his signature on blank cheques, later dropping him near his car while threatening him to remain silent,” it added.

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The FIR further noted that upon returning, Walia found that the accused had stolen ₹50,000 from his café and deleted all CCTV recordings. In his statement to the police, Yadav revealed that his father had worked with the Border Security Force (BSF) and passed away in 2007, and that he got married in 2015.

What are the charges on Vikash Yadav and Nikhil Gupta by US Dept?

Yadav and Gupta have been charged with several serious offenses, including murder-for-hire, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, also with a maximum penalty of 10 years. Additionally, they face conspiracy charges to commit money laundering, which could result in a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

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A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The US Justice Department noted, “An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”

In June, Gupta was extradited from the Czech Republic to the US to face trial, where he pleaded ‘not guilty.’

In response to security concerns raised by the US government, India formed a high-level inquiry committee in November of last year. The Ministry of External Affairs stated that India takes such inputs seriously, as they impact national security interests, and relevant departments are already examining the issue.

(With inputs from agencies)