US to seek extradition of Bishnoi, Nagra, says official

The US will seek extradition of Lawrence Bishnoi, accused of ordering the killing of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada and several other crimes in America, an official said Sunday.

The US Department of Justice will also seek extradition of Gurinderjit Singh Nagra, for his involvement in a USD 4,00,000 extortion case in the US, alleging that he worked in concert with the Bishnoi and Jaggu Bhagwanpuria gangs to target families based in the US.

Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, was killed in Surrey in British Columbia, Canada, on June 18, 2023. An official in the US Attorney's Office replied in affirmative in response to questions on extradition of Bishnoi and Nagra but did not elaborate.

"Yes. Beyond that, we have no additional comment," Ciaran McEvoy, Public Affairs Officer, US Attorney's Office, Central District of California, said in an e-mail response to PTI. In a joint operation earlier this week, law enforcement agencies in the United States, Canada, and Europe arrested 24 persons – 11 of them in California – connected with three India-based transnational organised crime groups charged with a litany of criminal acts.

In total, the US Department of Justice charged 37 people in the indictment as part of its 'Operation Hardball'.

The US has also charged Bishnoi's aide Goldy Brar with ordering Nijjar's assassination. The FBI has announced a USD 50,000 reward for information leading to Brar's arrest.