US Justice Department says it will seek extradition of Lawrence Bishnoi after Operation Hardball indictment

The United States Department of Justice has said it intends to seek the extradition of Lawrence Bishnoi, the Indian gangster named in a recent transnational crime indictment linked to the killing of Canada-based Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Bishnoi is currently in custody in India, where he is lodged in a jail in Gujarat. The announcement follows a coordinated law enforcement operation involving the US, Canada and Europe that led to arrests connected to Indian crime syndicates with cross-border networks.

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A public affairs officer for the US Attorney's Office in the Central District of California said Bishnoi remains incarcerated in India and that the US intends to pursue extradition, while noting that the process can take years. The indictment, announced earlier this week, charged 37 people as part of Operation Hardball. According to the material provided, 24 people linked to three Indian crime syndicates were arrested in the wider operation.

The case has immediate legal and diplomatic significance because Bishnoi is already facing multiple criminal proceedings in India. The supporting material says Indian authorities could argue that he should first face trial, and if convicted, serve any sentence in the cases pending against him before any extradition is considered. Those cases include allegations of murder, extortion and organised crime, making the extradition question more complex than a standard transfer request.

The indictment also names Bishnoi's aide Goldy Brar, along with Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, who is lodged in an Assam jail, and Canada-based Ravinder Singh Dhanda. Bishnoi and Brar have been charged with ordering Nijjar's assassination, according to the supplied rows. The FBI has also announced a $50,000 reward for information leading to Brar's arrest, underlining the wider international effort around the case.

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The extradition process itself would move through several official channels. The supplied material says the request would be prepared by the US Department of Justice and transmitted by the US State Department to India's Ministry of External Affairs. Indian authorities would then examine whether the request complies with the 1997 bilateral extradition treaty and India's Extradition Act of 1962, with consultation from the Ministry of Home Affairs and agencies including the Central Bureau of Investigation.

What remains unclear is when the US will formally send the extradition request and how Indian authorities will respond. The material says there is no clarity on the timing, and that the legal process is likely to be lengthy. The next developments to watch are whether the request is filed, whether Indian courts or agencies prioritise domestic cases against Bishnoi, and how the wider Operation Hardball prosecutions proceed in the United States.

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