SOURCE: AFI
A U.S. court has dismissed Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun’s assertion that he successfully served a legal summons to India’s National Security Advisor (NSA), Ajit Doval, during the latter’s visit to the United States on February 12-13, 2025. The ruling came after a judge from the Southern District of New York reviewed a letter from Pannun’s lawyer detailing failed attempts to deliver the notice, reinforcing India’s stance that no such service occurred.
Doval, who accompanied Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the trip, was staying at Blair House, the U.S. president’s official guest residence, under tight security provided by the U.S. Secret Service. Pannun, a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen and leader of the banned Sikhs for Justice group, had hired two process servers and an investigator to deliver the summons, which stemmed from a civil lawsuit he filed in September 2024. The lawsuit accuses Indian officials of orchestrating a failed assassination plot against him, a claim U.S. authorities have linked to an Indian government agent, Vikash Yadav.
According to the lawyer’s letter, the first server, Ambiko Wallace, arrived at Blair House on February 12 at 7:22 p.m. but encountered a barricaded checkpoint manned by Secret Service agents. After presenting the legal documents, Wallace was promptly turned away. The following day, a second server, Wayne Engram—a 15-year veteran in the field—tried a bolder approach. When agents again refused to accept the summons, Engram attempted to leave the envelope on the ground, a move he described as a “standard method of service.” An agent warned him of arrest if he proceeded, prompting Engram to abandon the documents at a Starbucks roughly 100 feet away instead. He later informed the agents of the location and urged them to retrieve it for Doval.
The court, however, found these efforts inadequate. The judge noted that the summons was neither handed to Blair House staff, hotel management, nor any security personnel assigned to Doval, as required by the court’s prior order. An investigator’s phone inquiries to Blair House staff and the Secret Service also yielded no success, with officials refusing to accept the documents or provide an email for delivery.
The ruling aligns with India’s position, articulated by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, that Pannun’s summons rested on “unwarranted and unsubstantiated imputations.” India has conducted its own investigation into the alleged murder plot, recommending legal action against Yadav, while Nikhil Gupta, another Indian national implicated in the case, remains in U.S. custody awaiting trial on November 3, 2025.
Pannun’s persistent legal maneuvers have strained diplomatic ties, with India labeling him a terrorist and criticizing his separatist activities. For now, the U.S. court’s decision marks another setback in his efforts to confront India’s top security official through legal channels.
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