Pannun murder plot: Nikhil Gupta hasn’t sought consular access, says MEA
Hindustan TimesNEW DELHI : The ministry of external affairs on Friday said it did not receive a formal request for consular access for Indian national Nikhil Gupta, who was extradited to the US last week. Gupta pleaded not guilty on Monday to murder-for-hire conspiracy charges in a court in Manhattan and a source close to his family told Reuters on Thursday that it wanted New Delhi’s help to “get justice”. “We have so far not received any request for consular access from Gupta, but his family has got in touch with us,” EAM spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told reporters. Nikhil Gupta, extradited to US in Pannun probe, hasn’t sought consular access “Regardless of the allegations raised against him, he is an Indian citizen and a patriot who deserves the rights and protections granted by the government to its citizens, the source said.