India has rejected as "fabricated and malicious" a US civil lawsuit filed by Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun naming NSA Ajit Doval and former R&AW chief Samant Goel over an alleged assassination plot.. India calls Pannun lawsuit against Ajit Doval, ex-R&AW chief 'frivolous'Newdelhi,Nov 11, 2026 00:08 ISTIndia has rejected as “fabricated and malicious” allegations against National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and former Research and Analysis Wing chief Samant Goel in a civil lawsuit filed by Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in a US court.The response came after the US State Department said it had sent the court summonses to the Indian side through a diplomatic note.

Pannun, legal counsel for the banned group Sikhs for Justice, has sought damages over an alleged plot to assassinate him and accused the Indian officials of orchestrating it.“We reject the fabricated and malicious attacks on our high officials. Also we reject the frivolous lawsuits.

A request for serving of judicial documents in India can only be routed through India's designated central authority that is the Ministry of Law and Justice,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a regular media briefing.The US State Department served the summonses through diplomatic channels to the Indian Embassy in Washington DC on October 9, PTI reported. “The diplomatic note was signed on September 30, 2026, and delivered on October 9, 2026,” the State Department said.Sikhs for Justice is banned in India, while Pannun is wanted by Indian investigating agencies on various terror charges. In November 2023, US federal prosecutors charged Indian national Nikhil Gupta with working with an Indian government employee in the alleged foiled plot to kill Pannun in New York.“The Department has no discretion in carrying out this request from the District Court under the FSIA,” the diplomatic note said, referring to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.The note said the transmission of the summonses should not be seen as an indication of the US government's position on whether the plaintiffs had complied with the law, the status of any defendant, whether the summonses had been properly served, or the merits of any claims or defences.It added that under US law, any challenge to the court's jurisdiction or other defence, including claims of sovereign immunity, must be raised before the court hearing the matter.

It advised the parties to consult an attorney in the US.The diplomatic note said the US government was not a party to the case and could not represent other parties in the matter.India has rejected Pannun's allegations and the lawsuit, while maintaining that requests to serve judicial documents in the country must be routed through the Ministry of Law and Justice.- Ends