'Made a scapegoat': Vikash Yadav's lawyers claim he is being made a scapegoat over assassination allegations

The legal representatives of Vikash Yadav, a former officer of India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), have asserted that he is being unjustly portrayed as a "scapegoat in international politics" following allegations from the United States concerning a failed assassination attempt on Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

In an exclusive interview with India Today TV, Yadav's attorneys, RK Handoo and Aditya Choudhary, dismissed the accusations as baseless, stating that their client was not involved in any criminal activity. "Vikash Yadav has never stepped out of the country. He has never travelled abroad," they emphasized, highlighting that he became aware of these serious allegations through media coverage.

The U.S. Justice Department has charged Yadav, referred to as CC-1 in the indictment, in connection with the purported plot to eliminate Pannun. The indictment outlines a collaborative effort between Yadav and other individuals, both within India and internationally, aimed at orchestrating the assassination. According to the document, Yadav and his alleged accomplice, Nikhil Gupta, allegedly agreed to pay $100,000 for the assassination but later discovered that the person they hired was an FBI informant.

Yadav's legal team further condemned the U.S. allegations as part of a larger conspiracy against India and its government. They refuted claims linking a prior extortion case against Yadav to an attempt to shield him from extradition to the U.S., stating, "This is equivalent to casting aspersions on the entire judicial system in India." They affirmed that due process is being observed and that Indian courts are actively reviewing the matter. "It is not right to say that the case has been filed only to stop his extradition," they added.

The indictment against Yadav was part of a second indictment that was unsealed in a New York court. Nikhil Gupta, Yadav's alleged co-conspirator, had previously faced charges and was extradited to the United States.

In a statement regarding the ongoing situation, the Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that the individual mentioned in the U.S. indictment concerning the foiled assassination plot of Pannun is no longer employed by the Indian government.