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New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has kept its investigation into alleged terrorism-related offences against US national Matthew Aaron VanDyke and other six Ukrainians open even though the chargesheet filed against them on Tuesday does not include the serious UAPA allegations under which he was initially arrested, officials have told the Sunday Guardian.
VanDyke was arrested by the NIA on 13 March 2026 under Section 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. On 4 June, the agency obtained an extension of 90 days for completing the investigation, taking the total period to 180 days.
On Tuesday, 8 September, the NIA filed a chargesheet against VanDyke and six Ukrainians under Sections 21 and 23 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, concerning alleged violations relating to their entry into and movement in India while dropping the stringent provisions of UAPA.
Officials said the investigation into the terrorism-related offences remains ongoing against the accused and the agency has not ruled out the possibility of such offences being made out.
“The agency is continuing to collect and assess evidence before forming an opinion on whether an offence has been made out, whether sufficient evidence exists and whether the evidence satisfies the applicable legal requirements. We are going to file our report very soon”, an official told the Sunday Guardian.
The position comes amid questions over the difference between what the NIA told the court on 2 September and the offences included in Tuesday’s chargesheet.
When asked why the agency had told the court on 2 September that material relating to serious offences had been found against VanDyke, but those offences were not made part of the chargesheet filed on Tuesday, officials said the agency “had not ruled out those offences.”
“The conclusion on the terrorism-related offences is yet to be reached”, they said.
The defence team of VanDyke , in a statement issued on Tuesday, questioned the outcome of the investigation. Lawyers Rohit Dandriyal and Rohit Gour said their client had been kept in custody for approximately 180 days after initially being arrested on serious UAPA allegations, but the chargesheet ultimately invoked provisions of the Foreigners Act instead.
The lawyers questioned what material had emerged during the investigation to justify the initial allegations and said the defence maintained that the allegations against VanDyke were “vague and unsupported by sufficient and credible material”.
When reached for a comment on speculation that political pressure might be playing a part in the handling of the case, NIA Special Public Prosecutor Rahul Tyagi, who is handling the VanDyke case, categorically denied any such influence.
“NIA never works under political pressure,” Tyagi told this newspaper, adding that there was “no political pressure of any kind”. He said the NIA is an independent agency and works independently.