PRAGUE: Nikhil Gupta, arrested in Prague for his alleged involvement in a foiled plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist leader, has been shifted to solitary confinement. The move comes after Czech authorities received intelligence about a credible threat to Gupta’s life.
The information about Gupta’s transfer to solitary confinement was confirmed by his lawyer in Prague, Petr Slepicka. Gupta, who is at Pankrác prison, is now placed in isolation, accompanied by two guards whenever he leaves his cell. Meetings with him also occur through a glass wall.
The threat to Gupta’s life was initially disclosed in an email from Rudolf Sedlacek, the head of the prison guard department of the Prison Service of the Czech Republic, to the municipal court in Prague. In the email sent last October, Sedlacek sought permission for Gupta to appear for a hearing via video conference due to credible security risks.
Sedlacek revealed that the information about the threat came from the United States authorities, prompting the Czech government’s intervention. Gupta’s family had filed a plea before the Supreme Court in India, highlighting the violation of his fundamental rights due to solitary confinement.
However, last week, the Supreme Court rejected the plea, deeming it a sensitive matter involving international law. Gupta, facing murder-for-hire charges in the United States, had his extradition approved by the municipal court in Prague in November. He is currently appealing the decision in a higher court.
The charges against Gupta, if proven, carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, according to the United States Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York.
