India urges US intelligence Chief Tulsi Gabbard to act against Khalistanis

India on Monday (17 Mar ’25) urged Tulsi Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence of United States, to take strong action against Khalistani terrorists operating out of her country. Sources said that the issue was raised by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh during his meeting with Tulsi Gabbard, given that banned Khalistani outfit ‘Sikhs for Justice’ is leading the tirade of indulging in unlawful activities in the US. National Security Advisor Ajit Doval in a separate meeting with Gabbard flagged Khalistan sympathisers, using the US territory to perpetuate terror activities in India, sources stated.

Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Canadian-American lawyer and one of the main leader of the contemperory Khalistan movement, has been openly espousing separatist cause and threatening the leadership in India through his videos.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday evening presented a vase containing holy water from the Prayagraj which hosted world’s largest gathering of humans at Maha Kumbh, to Gabbard during their meeting. Gabbard is in India as part of multi-national official tour. In Delhi, she will address Raisina Dialogue on Tuesday which is being attended by top global security experts and other sectoral specialists.

This is Ms Gabbard’s second meeting with Modi in two months; the last one was in February when PM was in Washington for a bilateral meeting with President Donald Trump.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh during his engagement with Gabbard also explored avenues for collaboration in cutting-edge defence innovation and niche technologies, reflecting the two countries shared commitment to advancing mutual strategic interests. The Ministry of Defence stated it was “a productive meeting” between the two leaders given that the discussions, drawn from the joint statement issued after the recent meeting of Modi with the US President Donald Trump, reaffirmed the growing strength of the India-US bilateral defence partnership.

Both leaders emphasised that strategic security remains a vital pillar of the comprehensive global strategic cooperation between the two nations, the MoD said.

Singh and Gabbard “reviewed the significant strides made in the areas of military exercises, strategic cooperation, integration of defence industrial supply chains and information-sharing cooperation, especially in the maritime domain, between India and US.” “Happy to have met the US Director of National Intelligence Ms @TulsiGabbard in New Delhi. We discussed a wide range of issues which include defence and information sharing, aiming to further deepen the India-US partnership,” Singh posted on X..

Additionally, they addressed key areas such as enhancing interoperability and fostering greater integration of defence industrial supply chains to bolster resilience and innovation.