S Jaishankar reacts to US ambassador Eric Garcetti’s ‘red line’ remark on Pannun row

External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Monday reacted to the ‘red line’ comment made by US Ambassador Eric Garcetti over the alleged Gurpatwant Singh Pannun assassination bid, saying New Delhi has been investigating the matter on the basis of “certain information” provided by the country.

“The US ambassador as an ambassador will say what he thinks is the position of his government. The position of my government is that in this particular case, there has been certain information provided to us which we are investigating,” S Jaishankar said.

S Jaishankar said India’s own security interests are involved in the probe.

“It is something we are investigating as we believe our own national security interests are involved in that investigation,” he said.

“So, as and when we have something to say on the investigation we would be very glad to speak about it. At this point, beyond the fact that there is an investigation going on, we have nothing more to say,” he added.

Last year, the American authorities charged an Indian national for allegedly working with an Indian government employee and agreeing to pay an assassin $1,00,000 to kill New York-based Pannun, a pro-Khalistan terrorist.

In an interview last week, US ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said the two countries had been working together on the investigation. He, however, in a strongly worded statement, said the proverbial red line shouldn’t be crossed between the two countries.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun is an India-designated terrorist who holds American and Canadian citizenship.

“When people do step over the line saying something will be bombed as opposed to saying somebody shouldn’t fly. The United States freedom of speech, we want success for anybody if there’s a criminal accusation to actually reach the threshold that would have a successful outcome,” Garcetti was quoted as saying by ANI.

He said no government employee of any country can be involved in an assassination plot of a foreign citizen.

“I think that’s absolutely critical. For any of us, just abstractly, that has to be a red line. No government or government employee can be involved in the alleged assassination of one of your own citizens. That’s just an unacceptable red line,” Garcetti said.

“Any country, having an active member of their government involved in a second country trying to assassinate one of their citizens. That’s, I think, usually a red line for any country. That’s a basic issue of sovereignty. That’s a basic issue of rights,” he added.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun often makes terrorism threats directed against India. Last November, he said Air India would not be allowed to operate. In December, he threatened to attack the Indian Parliament.