Vikash Yadav, identified as CC-1 in a 2023 indictment by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), is a former Indian government employee accused of orchestrating a foiled plot to assassinate pro-Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. This case has strained India-U.S. relations and echoes a recent assassination in Canada. Yadav allegedly recruited Nikhil Gupta to find a hitman for the plot, which was intended to occur in New York City.

U.S. prosecutors have filed murder-for-hire and money laundering charges against Yadav, who previously worked in India's Cabinet Secretariat and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). He reportedly provided vital information about Pannun to facilitate the murder plan. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that Yadav is no longer a government employee.

The plot against Pannun, a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen wanted in India on terrorism charges, allegedly had the backing of senior Indian intelligence officials, potentially including individuals close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The indictment also links Yadav to the assassination of another Sikh separatist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Canada in June 2023. While Gupta has been arrested, Yadav remains at large, and investigations are ongoing amid heightened geopolitical tensions between India and Canada