FBI director meets CBI chief in Delhi, discuss 'foiled' murder plot of Pannun, extradition of 26/11 terrorists
The high-profile visit came against the backdrop of an alleged "foiled" murder plot of Khalistani terrorist, Gurupatant Singh Pannun on American soil-- a claim that Indian officials rejected but assured investigation.
US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Chief Christopher Wray who is currently on his three-day visit to New Delhi, met Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Praveen Sood in the national capital on Monday. The high-profile visit came against the backdrop of an alleged "foiled" murder plot of Khalistani terrorist, Gurupatant Singh Pannun on American soil-- a claim that Indian officials rejected but assured investigation.
According to the statement released by the CBI, both officials discussed a range of issues including the extradition of the wanted criminals, organised crime and cybercrimes.
Extradition of 26/11 terrorists
Notably, for India, the rise in anti-India activities in the US is a major concern besides the extradition of a Pakistan-origin Canadian citizen, who was one of the key conspirators of the 26/11 attack in Mumbai.
However, for US, its concern is cybercriminals who duped billions of dollars of gullible American citizens. As per the FBI, Indian criminals are behind the maximum cyber loot-related fraud. According to a 2022 FBI report, India is among the top five countries in terms of victims of cybercrimes across the world.
“The meeting focused on strengthening the exchange of information on criminal matters, for improved coordination in combating transnational crimes and sharing of expertise in the investigation of technology-enabled crimes. Both agencies recognised the challenges posed by organized crime networks, cyber-enabled financial crimes, ransomware threats, economic crimes and transnational crimes," a press release issued by the CBI said.
Besides, Monday's meeting, the top Biden official will meet Indian National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and other officials in the national capital where it is expected that both sides would share security concerns.
Who is Gurupatwant Singh Pannun
It is worth mentioning that Pannun-- a leader of the so-called 'Sikhs for Justice'-- is wanted by Indian probe agencies on various terror charges. Recently, his name appeared on the wanted list after he threatened to blow up an Air India flight on November 18.
Earlier last week, US federal prosecutors charged Nikhil Gupta, 52, with working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Pannun. The US prosecutors informed a Manhattan court that authorities in the Czech Republic arrested and detained Gupta-- a claim that the Indian official vehemently rejected but raised "grave concerns" over the matter.