Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India’s commitment is to the rule of law, and if someone provides information, the government would look into it. These remarks mark his first comments on the US allegations relating to an Indian link over a foiled plot targeting Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu.

Making this assertion in an interview with The Financial Times, Prime Minister Modi also mentioned that ties between India and the US are robust, and there is strong bipartisan support for strengthening relations between the two nations. He further said that it is not appropriate to link a few incidents with diplomatic ties.

Modi said, “If someone gives us any information, we would definitely look into it.” He also emphasised, “If a citizen of ours has done anything good or bad, we are ready to look into it. Our commitment is to the rule of law.”

These observations from the Prime Minister come in the backdrop of US federal prosecutors charging that one Nikhil Gupta was working with an Indian government employee in the foiled plot to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, who holds dual citizenship of the US and Canada.

India has already constituted a probe committee to investigate the allegations.

In the interview, Modi expressed India was “deeply concerned about the activities of certain extremist groups based overseas.”

He emphasised, “These elements, under the guise of freedom of expression, have engaged in intimidation and incited violence.”

At the same time, Modi

stated, “There is strong bipartisan support for the strengthening of this relationship, which is a clear indicator of a mature and stable partnership... Security and counter-terrorism cooperation have been key components of our partnership,” Modi stated.

“I don’t think it is appropriate to link a few incidents with diplomatic relations between the two countries,” said the Prime Minister.

India-US ties have experienced significant progress in various areas, including defence, trade, investment, critical technology, energy, and climate change.

Modi emphasised, “We need to accept the fact that we are living in the era of multilateralism. The world is interconnected and interdependent. This reality compels us to recognise that absolute agreement on all matters cannot be a prerequisite for collaboration.”

Both sides are currently working on an ambitious roadmap for Indo-US collaboration in seven specific high-technology areas, including semiconductors, next-generation telecommunication, artificial intelligence, and defense under the “Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET)”.

Modi visited Washington in June, bringing new momentum to ties between the two sides. US President Joe Biden visited India in September for the G20 summit, during which he had extensive talks with Modi to further expand bilateral ties.