Former Research and Analysis Wing officer Vikash Yadav, charged by the United States Department of Justice with murder-for-hire and money laundering in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, has from attending hearings in a separate extortion case in a Delhi court citing a threat to his life, reported The Indian Express on Sunday.

Yadav was arrested by Delhi Police in an extortion case on December 18, 2023, less than three weeks after he was named in an alleged plot to kill Sikhs for Justice chief . The two cases do not seem to be related.

The court granted Yadav’s request for exemption from attending his hearings in the extortion case and ordered him to appear before it on February 3. He had been granted bail in April after spending four months in Tihar jail.

On October 18, Yadav was charged with and money laundering by the United States Department of Justice in connection with the alleged plot to assassinate Pannun. The plot was foiled before the Khalistan separatist leader could be killed.

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation had also placed Yadav on its “wanted” list and sought more information about him.

Yadav was described in the US indictment as a senior field officer in...