Angry India demands US apology

Friday, 20/12/2013

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NEW DELHI / WASHINGTON: Rejecting a statement of “regret” from US secretary of state John Kerry, an angry India on Thursday demanded an apology for the strip-searching of diplomat Devyani Khobragade and withdrawal of charges against her.

It also took strong issue with Indian-born New York attorney Preet Bharara’s defence of his arrest of Khobragade, who according to him “tried to evade US laws designed to protect from exploitation the domestic employees of diplomats and consular officers”. In response, ministry of external affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said there was only “one victim” in this case and that was Khobragade.

Late evening, US undersecretary of state for political affairs Wendy Sherman called up foreign secretary Sujatha Singh and reportedly distanced the state department from Bharara’s statement while also discussing steps to resolve the situation.

Khobragade was arrested in public and cavity-searched by US authorities on December 12 on charges of visa fraud and exploiting her maid, Sangeeta Richard.

“We have asked for an explanation and we expect them to say sorry... and we have asked for the cases to be dropped and withdrawn immediately,” external affairs minister Salman Khurshid said, adding that he “would still prefer to call the incident a conspiracy than an act of gigantic stupidity” on the part of some US officials. NEW DELHI: In a phone call to NSA Shivshankar Menon late Wednesday, Kerry had expressed regret and stressed that the issue not be allowed to hurt a “vital relationship”.

A defiant Bharara, on his part, said, “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?”

In his statement, Bharara confirmed having “evacuated” Richard’s family just before the diplomat’s arrest — an act that has inspired conspiracy theories in India. He said the US was “compelled” to act as a legal process was on in India to “silence her (Richard)”.

The attorney denied Khobragade was handcuffed, noting that she was given “unusual courtesies”, including being allowed a phone call from her car and coffee. He said her being strip-searched was standard procedure.

“There were no courtesies in the treatment meted out to the diplomat under the normal definition of that word in the English language,” the MEA spokesperson retorted. “When the legal process in another friendly and democratic country is interfered with in this manner, it not only amounts to interference but also raises serious concerns of calling into question the very legal system of that country.”

“This statement is one more attempt at a post facto rationalization for an action that should never have taken place in the first instance,” Akbaruddin added.