U.S. Court Permits Gurpatwant Singh Pannun to Serve Notice on Ajit Doval and Samant Goel

UPDATE - follow-up to Pannun's civil lawsuit: U.S. State Department formally serves notice on India: A U.S. court has allowed Khalistani separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun to serve his civil plea on National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and former intelligence chief Samant Goel through Indian judicial channels.

Court Orders And Timeline

U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla issued the order on Monday, November 9, 2026. The judge directed Mr. Pannun to prepare multiple documents on or before November 30. These include the summons for Mr. Doval and Mr. Goel, details of Indian law and procedure, the route for issuing the summons, and records of previous attempts to serve the officials under the Hague Convention. The State Department earlier submitted that it served the notice at the Indian Embassy in Washington through a certificate signed on October 9, 2026. The State Department noted in a footnote that delivering the notice was a legal obligation and did not reflect a position on the case.

Official Reactions

The Ministry of External Affairs rejected the lawsuit and called the attacks on Indian officials fabricated and malicious. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that requests for serving judicial documents in India must route through the designated central authority, which is the Ministry of Law and Justice, rather than the Embassy or the MEA.

Background Context

Mr. Pannun's civil lawsuit is linked to an FBI investigation into an alleged assassination plot against him in June 2023. An undercover DEA informant had pointed to Indian businessman Nikhil Gupta and conversations with Indian intelligence officials, including Vikash Yadav. Mr. Gupta has pleaded guilty, with sentencing set for November 20. Canadian and U.S. officials had previously dropped claims involving Mr. Doval, Mr. Goel, and Home Minister Amit Shah in related investigations. Mr. Pannun previously tried to serve a notice on Mr. Doval during a February 2025 visit to Washington alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Context

Civil lawsuits involving foreign government officials often navigate complex diplomatic protocols and international treaties like the Hague Convention for legal service across borders. India maintains that formal judicial requests must follow established domestic legal channels through its Ministry of Law and Justice.