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| US withdraws diplomat from Delhi over Devyani Khobragade row | US withdraws diplomat from Delhi over Devyani Khobragade row |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| The US state department has agreed to India's request to withdraw a diplomat from Delhi in connection with a row that has threatened to badly damage relations between the countries. It appears that the dispute – sparked by the arrest of India's deputy consul general in New York on charges of visa fraud and underpaying her maid last month – is moving towards a conclusion. | The US state department has agreed to India's request to withdraw a diplomat from Delhi in connection with a row that has threatened to badly damage relations between the countries. It appears that the dispute – sparked by the arrest of India's deputy consul general in New York on charges of visa fraud and underpaying her maid last month – is moving towards a conclusion. |
| Devyani Khobragade was expected to land in Delhi late on Friday on an Air India flight from New York after a battle of nerves over two days that resulted in her effective expulsion from the US hours after she was granted immunity from the charges against her. "The drama is coming to a close. It was beginning to seriously affect the relationship and, because there is still sufficient goodwill despite the outrage, we have seen serious efforts in recent days to find a way out," said Raja Mohan, a foreign affairs analyst in Delhi. | Devyani Khobragade was expected to land in Delhi late on Friday on an Air India flight from New York after a battle of nerves over two days that resulted in her effective expulsion from the US hours after she was granted immunity from the charges against her. "The drama is coming to a close. It was beginning to seriously affect the relationship and, because there is still sufficient goodwill despite the outrage, we have seen serious efforts in recent days to find a way out," said Raja Mohan, a foreign affairs analyst in Delhi. |
| Khobragade's arrest caused outrage in India and prompted a range of retaliatory measures in Delhi against US diplomats. Though John Kerry, the US secretary of state, expressed regret after the incident, this fell short of the apology demanded by India. Senior US officials postponed trips to India while Indian officials expressed "deep disappointment". | |
| Hours after a grand jury in New York indicted Khobragade, 39, for visa fraud and making multiple false statements, and with a court appearance due next week, a series of last-minute moves saw the US first grant a visa confirming her full immunity, then ask India to waive that immunity and finally ask the mother-of-two to leave the country. | |
| Indian official sources said they had applied for the visa, normally a formality, about three weeks ago. Khobragade flew out of the US, according to her lawyer, with "her head held high". "She looks forward to assuring that the truth is known," the lawyer said. | Indian official sources said they had applied for the visa, normally a formality, about three weeks ago. Khobragade flew out of the US, according to her lawyer, with "her head held high". "She looks forward to assuring that the truth is known," the lawyer said. |
| The US state department confirmed a US official would leave Delhi, saying it deeply regretted the move. Senior officials in Delhi had earlier confirmed a demand for the US diplomat of Khobragade's rank to be withdrawn – tantamount to an expulsion – following a "strict principle of reciprocity".Officials in India have not directly denied US prosecutors' claims that Khobragade lied to visa officials about the salary she would pay her maid, who had been flown over from India, but say the charges are a "grey area open to interpretation". "The worst that can be said about her is that she did not comply with the amount that was supposed to be paid under the law," Salman Khurshid, India's foreign minister, told the Guardian last month. | The US state department confirmed a US official would leave Delhi, saying it deeply regretted the move. Senior officials in Delhi had earlier confirmed a demand for the US diplomat of Khobragade's rank to be withdrawn – tantamount to an expulsion – following a "strict principle of reciprocity".Officials in India have not directly denied US prosecutors' claims that Khobragade lied to visa officials about the salary she would pay her maid, who had been flown over from India, but say the charges are a "grey area open to interpretation". "The worst that can be said about her is that she did not comply with the amount that was supposed to be paid under the law," Salman Khurshid, India's foreign minister, told the Guardian last month. |
| The indictment claims Khobragade showed visa officials in India a contract which stated she would pay her Indian maid $4,500 per month but subsequently wrote out a second contract offering a significantly lower rate of pay and eventually gave her employee far less than the US minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. It is also claimed that Khobragade withheld her maid's passport and had forced her to work 13- to 15-hour days, seven days a week. She denies all wrongdoing. | The indictment claims Khobragade showed visa officials in India a contract which stated she would pay her Indian maid $4,500 per month but subsequently wrote out a second contract offering a significantly lower rate of pay and eventually gave her employee far less than the US minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. It is also claimed that Khobragade withheld her maid's passport and had forced her to work 13- to 15-hour days, seven days a week. She denies all wrongdoing. |
| Though the exact sequence of events leading to the arrest is unclear, it appears the US state department alerted Indian authorities to the pending prosecution of Khobragade several weeks before the diplomat was arrested. Usual practice in such cases is for the official in question to be quietly withdrawn. However, no action was taken as the legal case against Khobragade gathered momentum. | Though the exact sequence of events leading to the arrest is unclear, it appears the US state department alerted Indian authorities to the pending prosecution of Khobragade several weeks before the diplomat was arrested. Usual practice in such cases is for the official in question to be quietly withdrawn. However, no action was taken as the legal case against Khobragade gathered momentum. |
| Indian authorities had shifted Khobragade to their mission at the UN after her arrest, a move that should have guaranteed full diplomatic immunity rather than the limited immunity that comes with a consular post. However, without a crucial visa from US authorities the possibility remained that Khobragade could still have been open to prosecution. If found guilty she would have faced up 10 years in jail. | Indian authorities had shifted Khobragade to their mission at the UN after her arrest, a move that should have guaranteed full diplomatic immunity rather than the limited immunity that comes with a consular post. However, without a crucial visa from US authorities the possibility remained that Khobragade could still have been open to prosecution. If found guilty she would have faced up 10 years in jail. |
| One sticking point in the deal, according to Indian officials, was Khobragade's own demand that she be allowed to return to the US in the future. It does not appear that this demand has been met. Her husband is a US citizen and her two children were still in the US last night, officials told the Guardian. | One sticking point in the deal, according to Indian officials, was Khobragade's own demand that she be allowed to return to the US in the future. It does not appear that this demand has been met. Her husband is a US citizen and her two children were still in the US last night, officials told the Guardian. |
| While New Delhi and Washington stressed the importance of their bilateral relationship during the crisis, it took weeks of complex wrangling to find a workable solution both sides could live with. | While New Delhi and Washington stressed the importance of their bilateral relationship during the crisis, it took weeks of complex wrangling to find a workable solution both sides could live with. |
| Earlier this week Indian authorities ordered the US embassy to close a club for expatriate Americans there. Security barriers outside the embassy were removed in the days after the arrest of Khobragade in "a spirit of strict reciprocity", said one Indian official with direct knowledge of the case. | Earlier this week Indian authorities ordered the US embassy to close a club for expatriate Americans there. Security barriers outside the embassy were removed in the days after the arrest of Khobragade in "a spirit of strict reciprocity", said one Indian official with direct knowledge of the case. |
| A trip to India next week by the US energy secretary, Ernest Moniz, was postponed around the same time. The US assistant secretary of state for south Asia, Nisha Desai Biswal, delayed her first visit to the country to avoid the trip becoming embroiled in the dispute. | A trip to India next week by the US energy secretary, Ernest Moniz, was postponed around the same time. The US assistant secretary of state for south Asia, Nisha Desai Biswal, delayed her first visit to the country to avoid the trip becoming embroiled in the dispute. |
| Khobragade's departure removes the focus of current friction between New Delhi and Washington but it is unclear how long it will take for the anger to subside in the run-up to national elections in India in May. | Khobragade's departure removes the focus of current friction between New Delhi and Washington but it is unclear how long it will take for the anger to subside in the run-up to national elections in India in May. |
| Outrage in India has been fuelled by politicians' unwillingness to seem out of step with public mood. On Friday opposition leaders accused the ailing administration of the prime minister, Manmohan Singh, of failing to protect Indian interests. | Outrage in India has been fuelled by politicians' unwillingness to seem out of step with public mood. On Friday opposition leaders accused the ailing administration of the prime minister, Manmohan Singh, of failing to protect Indian interests. |
| "Bringing Khobragade is our defeat, not a win, because a case will be on against her in the US. The US has decided," Yashwant Sinha, of the Bharatiya Janata Party, told reporters. The treatment of Khobragade – who was briefly detained with other criminal defendants and strip-searched – caused particular anger. Relations between the US and India have long been rocky, though steadily improving since a nadir in the 1970s. Barack Obama received a warm welcome on his visit in 2010 when he described the two countries' shared interests as the foundations of "a defining partnership for the 21st century". However there remains deep suspicion of Washington in Delhi, and in India more generally, and many US officials see India as a difficult partner. | "Bringing Khobragade is our defeat, not a win, because a case will be on against her in the US. The US has decided," Yashwant Sinha, of the Bharatiya Janata Party, told reporters. The treatment of Khobragade – who was briefly detained with other criminal defendants and strip-searched – caused particular anger. Relations between the US and India have long been rocky, though steadily improving since a nadir in the 1970s. Barack Obama received a warm welcome on his visit in 2010 when he described the two countries' shared interests as the foundations of "a defining partnership for the 21st century". However there remains deep suspicion of Washington in Delhi, and in India more generally, and many US officials see India as a difficult partner. |
| Critics accuse Obama of failing to pay sufficient attention to ties with a country viewed as a key strategic counterbalance to China and an engine to boost the US economy, while American hopes of building a more robust business relationship with India have run into bureaucratic hurdles. | Critics accuse Obama of failing to pay sufficient attention to ties with a country viewed as a key strategic counterbalance to China and an engine to boost the US economy, while American hopes of building a more robust business relationship with India have run into bureaucratic hurdles. |
| Frustration has grown among the US corporate lobby. Indian sourcing rules for retail, information technology, medicine and clean energy products are contentious and US firms complain about "unfair" imports from India of everything from shrimp to steel pipes. In June more than 170 US lawmakers signed a letter to Obama about Indian policies they said threatened American jobs. | Frustration has grown among the US corporate lobby. Indian sourcing rules for retail, information technology, medicine and clean energy products are contentious and US firms complain about "unfair" imports from India of everything from shrimp to steel pipes. In June more than 170 US lawmakers signed a letter to Obama about Indian policies they said threatened American jobs. |
| Earlier this week the Indian prime minister cited a 2008 deal with the US on civil nuclear power as one of the major achievements of his nine-year tenure. However, implementation of the deal was blocked when Indian lawmakers passed crucial legislation affecting the liability of overseas firms investing in nuclear power in the south Asian country. | Earlier this week the Indian prime minister cited a 2008 deal with the US on civil nuclear power as one of the major achievements of his nine-year tenure. However, implementation of the deal was blocked when Indian lawmakers passed crucial legislation affecting the liability of overseas firms investing in nuclear power in the south Asian country. |
| Khobragade's arrest touched a range of sensitivities in India. Almost all middle-class households in India employ at least one, and often several, members of staff who will undertake tasks from cleaning and cooking to childcare and driving. | |
| With few Indian diplomats paid enough to legally employ local staff to perform such functions in postings in the west, the practice has long been to fly out Indian workers and paid rates that, if low in the US and elsewhere, would be generous at home. | |
| Preet Bharara, the prosecutor in Khobragade's case, said last month: "In fact the Indian government itself has been aware of this legal issue and that its diplomats and consular officers were at risk of violating the law. The question then may be asked: is it for US prosecutors to look the other way, ignore the law and the civil rights of victims … or is it the responsibility of the diplomats and consular officers and their government to make sure the law is observed?" | Preet Bharara, the prosecutor in Khobragade's case, said last month: "In fact the Indian government itself has been aware of this legal issue and that its diplomats and consular officers were at risk of violating the law. The question then may be asked: is it for US prosecutors to look the other way, ignore the law and the civil rights of victims … or is it the responsibility of the diplomats and consular officers and their government to make sure the law is observed?" |
| There have been several previous incidents involving senior Indian diplomats in the US and domestic staff brought from India. In 2011 the Indian consul general, Prabhu Dayal, was accused by his maid of forced labour and sexual harassment, charges he called "complete nonsense" and that were later dropped. | There have been several previous incidents involving senior Indian diplomats in the US and domestic staff brought from India. In 2011 the Indian consul general, Prabhu Dayal, was accused by his maid of forced labour and sexual harassment, charges he called "complete nonsense" and that were later dropped. |
| A year earlier a US judge recommended that an Indian diplomat and her husband pay a maid nearly $1.5m in compensation for being forced to work without pay and suffering "barbaric treatment" in their luxury Manhattan apartment. | A year earlier a US judge recommended that an Indian diplomat and her husband pay a maid nearly $1.5m in compensation for being forced to work without pay and suffering "barbaric treatment" in their luxury Manhattan apartment. |
| Bharara, the prosecutor, made the highly unusual move of issuing a lengthy statement addressing the arrest. He said Khobragade was afforded courtesies most Americans would not get, such as being allowed to make phone calls for two hours to arrange childcare and sort out personal matters, after she was arrested by state department agents outside the school that her children attend in Manhattan. | Bharara, the prosecutor, made the highly unusual move of issuing a lengthy statement addressing the arrest. He said Khobragade was afforded courtesies most Americans would not get, such as being allowed to make phone calls for two hours to arrange childcare and sort out personal matters, after she was arrested by state department agents outside the school that her children attend in Manhattan. |
| Bharara, who was born in India but moved with his family to New Jersey, defended his case. | Bharara, who was born in India but moved with his family to New Jersey, defended his case. |
| "One wonders whether any government would not take action regarding false documents being submitted to it in order to bring immigrants into the country," he said. "And one wonders why there is so much outrage about the alleged treatment of the Indian national accused of perpetrating these acts, but precious little outrage about the alleged treatment of the Indian victim and her spouse?" | "One wonders whether any government would not take action regarding false documents being submitted to it in order to bring immigrants into the country," he said. "And one wonders why there is so much outrage about the alleged treatment of the Indian national accused of perpetrating these acts, but precious little outrage about the alleged treatment of the Indian victim and her spouse?" |
| Khobragade will now take up a post in Delhi, a statement from the Indian ministry of external affairs said. | Khobragade will now take up a post in Delhi, a statement from the Indian ministry of external affairs said. |
| "At the time of her departure for India, Counsellor Khobragade reiterated her innocence on charges filed against her. She affirmed her gratitude to the government of India, in particular to the external affairs minister, and the people of India, as also the media, for their strong and sustained support during this period," it said. | "At the time of her departure for India, Counsellor Khobragade reiterated her innocence on charges filed against her. She affirmed her gratitude to the government of India, in particular to the external affairs minister, and the people of India, as also the media, for their strong and sustained support during this period," it said. |
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