Allegations that an Indian government agent ordered the killing of a US citizen in New York risk spoiling the Biden administration’s effort to deepen ties with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, although both sides are playing down the significance for now.

In an indictment unsealed Wednesday, prosecutors in Manhattan federal court accused an Indian national of attempting to orchestrate the murder of a Sikh activist in June, under the direction of an unidentified Indian official who had once allegedly served in one of the country’s internal security forces.