U.S. seeks to defuse spat with India

[JayAtl]

So I have been away for a week on a business trip to Leeds UK and been reading about this issue.

1. What it boils down to is that the women committed an unlawful act- Can't find anyone who disagrees she did not do so. Just how the outcome was handed.

2. She was indeed given a lot of leeway in the arrest process, she was not handcuffed on the scene, she was allowed 2 hrs of using her cellphone at the scene of arrest- something that is not allowed for any american citizen or anyone in the US

3. She did not have full diplomatic immunity. this was further confirmed by India's move to designate her AFTER the arrest as a Consular under the ' group' that now gets near complete immunity

4. She did lie on her application and have the maid attest to getting $4500 a month in wages. Which again I did not see anyone dispute.

The dispute I have been reading from Indians / India is the wage she got + room + meals is a lot per indian standards. But that is a moot point and does not make the written and signed to wages legal.

5. The issue Indians are having is with is the strip search. This I figure is due to cultural norms of how they treat own ' female' criminals in India. But again I am not sure if they in India do not follow the same safety features. It is done in the US, both for protecting the guards and for protecting the defendant. ( imagine if she had hung her self because they missed some article of clothing?)

6. I don't get why the maid is not the issue frankly... it is ridiculous to pay her circa $3 / hour even if she gets room and abording. This against labor laws here.


On the american side- the screw up was : again I think it all boils down to the " strip search" part...had she been arrested,booked and released - this would not have been such a big issue.

Within our laws there is a right to release the person on own recognizance (ROR), also known as an own recognizance (OR) or personal recognizance (PR), is a written promise signed by the defendant promising that they will show up for future court appearances and not engage in illegal activity while out on an ROR.

This means, after booking without necessarily " housing them in a jail unit" i.e. person arrested is in a cell but never goes to through the process of having to change into prison clothes thus avoiding any need for a strip search.

However that is up to the discretion of the arresting officers/ jail unit they take the person to.

 

[dbc]

Heads up. Indian prisons make American ones look like glorified motel rooms

k, not sure if that analogy works, but you get the picture.

I do get the picture. Please go ahead and arrest a US diplomat.

Surprised by your reaction. Don't think there is much chance of anything happening though. The state department is not about to set a precedent that will come back to bite it badly.

It's not in the hands of the State department and I don't think India has sufficient teeth to do any damage.

 

[kbd-raaf]

I do get the picture. Please go ahead and arrest a US diplomat.


It's not in the hands of the State department and I don't think India has sufficient teeth to do any damage.

I'll get on the phone with the MEA and get it done right away.

 

[Pakistanisage]

US may be willing to defuse the tensions but US is not willing to drop the charges , so far,
now that it I purely a law enforcement matter. Also, US has clearly stated that it is not willing to give Mrs. Khobragade immunity against Prosecution retroactively.

 

[sincity]

US stand firm and ready to fry the defendant in US criminal court.

 

[illusion8]

I really want this to go to trial

The solution to the week-long spat is almost at hand with US agreeing to India shifting her to its Permanent UN Mission in New York (from the Indian Consulate where she is currently the deputy), which will give her full diplomatic immunity from prosecution as long as she is there. Although Washington has said the immunity will not be retroactive and charges against her will remain in the books, it is understood that she will not be prosecuted for the length of time she is accredited to UN.

Technically, the diplomat could be asked by India to serve at the UN till retirement, but obviously, the political solution to end the stand off involves the diplomat eventually being withdrawn from US territory (perhaps as soon as she has wrapped up her affairs in New York), in which case she would technically be an absconder in US eyes, the same way her former housekeeper is, as per Indian law.

The small wrinkle in this scenario comes from Khobragade's personal circumstances, which also led to the "creative solution" of her being reassigned to India's UN Mission in New York, instead of, say, the Indian embassy in Washington or elsewhere. She is married to a remarkable New York-born Indian-American who is a professor of philosophy and an oenophile, and who is combining the two passions to become a "wine philosopher."

Devyani case resolution complicated by marriage to US-born 'wine philosopher' - The Times of India

 

[RescueRanger]

Devyani case resolution complicated by marriage to US-born 'wine philosopher' - The Times of India

You know you live in the "first" world, when have enough time on your hands and money in your pocket to turn "wine" into a philosophical study! F*** me DEAD!

 

[illusion8]

You know you live in the "first" world, when have enough time on your hands and money in your pocket to turn "wine" into a philosophical study! F*** me DEAD!

First world problems.

 

[Enemy]

AFAIK, all John Kerry did was to express regret at the manner of arrest, not the arrest or the case itself.



It could work the other way, too. He could become extra strict to dispel any perception of ethnic favoritism.



There is no question that it was a finger to the DOJ and NY prosecutors. India probably feels that the DOS will grant immunity sooner or later, despite current press statements.



Election fever.

After reports of her involvement in the Adarsh scam, another scam of her has been revealed.

MEA 'bent' rules to favour Devyani Khobragade - The Times of India


The Supreme Court found this in a judgment that was delivered three and half years ago while reinstating a dismissed IFS officer Mahaveer V Singhvi and imposing a fine of Rs 25,000 on the Union government for wrongfully terminating the services of the 1999 batch IFS officer.

In this judgment, the court noted the sensational allegations of Singhvi against his batch-mate Khobragade. His lawyer Jayant Bhushan said, "Authorities were desperate to cover up the highly dubious and motivated manner in which the rules of allotment (of foreign language) were altered only in respect of the 1999 batch of IFS appointees in order to favour a particular candidate who was graded lower than Singhvi."

Bhushan said despite being graded higher than five other candidates in the select list of 10, Singhvi was denied right of preference relating to allotment of a foreign language of his choice in order to accommodate one Devyani Khobragade, who was graded at two places below Singhvi and wanted German as her first preference.

 

[Developereo]

After reports of her involvement in the Adarsh scam, another scam of her has been revealed.

There's no question she's a shady character. Reminds me of the expression

"He may be a bastard, but he's our bastard"

I believe US President FDR said it about South American dictator Somoza.

 

[Enemy]

There's no question she's a shady character. Reminds me of the expression

"He may be a bastard, but he's our bastard"

I believe US President FDR said it about South American dictator Somoza.

Isn't it more than bizarre!

Indian diplomat's father claims low-wage maid is CIA agent - NY Daily News

The maid who was allegedly paid just $3.31 an hour by an Indian diplomat is actually a CIA agent, the official’s father bizarrely claimed Saturday.

Uttam Khobragade, father of Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade, said during a Mumbai press conference that he suspects the allegations against his daughter by housekeeper Sangeeta Richard, 42, are part of an elaborate plot to ruin her reputation.

“Going by the developments that have taken place over the last one year, the government of India feels that it appears to be a conspiracy,” Uttam Khobragade said, according to The Economic Times newspaper.

“We suspect that Sangeeta Richard is an agent of the CIA. We were made scapegoat in the whole case. Devyani is a brave woman and she has been performing all her duties regularly,” said Uttam, who is a former civil service officer.


Khobragade, 39, pleaded not guilty Dec. 12 to charges of visa fraud and making false statements.

Prosecutors said the diplomat submitted a bogus visa application for Richard, claiming the maid would earn $10 an hour when in reality she was paid a paltry $3.31 an hour.

“I’m happy to confirm she’s not a CIA agent,” said David Beasley, spokesman for Safe Horizon, a victims assistance agency helping Richard.

The charges against Khobragade sent shockwaves through India, where government officials insisted she should be afforded diplomatic immunity.

Indian authorities took particular exception that Khobragade had been strip searched after being arrested.

The diplomatic skirmish became so intense that Secretary of State Kerry expressed regret over the handling of the arrest.

But that didn’t stop the Indian government from retaliating by enacting a freeze on the duty-free import of food and alcohol for U.S. consulates and also ordered the removal of concrete barricades in front of the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi.

Devyani’s lawyer, Daniel Arshack, had no comment.

Read more: Indian diplomat's father claims low-wage maid is CIA agent - NY Daily News

 

[sincity]

Isn't it more than bizarre!

Indian diplomat's father claims low-wage maid is CIA agent - NY Daily News

The maid who was allegedly paid just $3.31 an hour by an Indian diplomat is actually a CIA agent, the official’s father bizarrely claimed Saturday.

Uttam Khobragade, father of Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade, said during a Mumbai press conference that he suspects the allegations against his daughter by housekeeper Sangeeta Richard, 42, are part of an elaborate plot to ruin her reputation.

“Going by the developments that have taken place over the last one year, the government of India feels that it appears to be a conspiracy,” Uttam Khobragade said, according to The Economic Times newspaper.


The story get weird by the hrs with it main plot getting unfold.

“We suspect that Sangeeta Richard is an agent of the CIA. We were made scapegoat in the whole case. Devyani is a brave woman and she has been performing all her duties regularly,” said Uttam, who is a former civil service officer.


Khobragade, 39, pleaded not guilty Dec. 12 to charges of visa fraud and making false statements.

Prosecutors said the diplomat submitted a bogus visa application for Richard, claiming the maid would earn $10 an hour when in reality she was paid a paltry $3.31 an hour.

“I’m happy to confirm she’s not a CIA agent,” said David Beasley, spokesman for Safe Horizon, a victims assistance agency helping Richard.

The charges against Khobragade sent shockwaves through India, where government officials insisted she should be afforded diplomatic immunity.

Indian authorities took particular exception that Khobragade had been strip searched after being arrested.

The diplomatic skirmish became so intense that Secretary of State Kerry expressed regret over the handling of the arrest.

But that didn’t stop the Indian government from retaliating by enacting a freeze on the duty-free import of food and alcohol for U.S. consulates and also ordered the removal of concrete barricades in front of the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi.

Devyani’s lawyer, Daniel Arshack, had no comment.

Read more: Indian diplomat's father claims low-wage maid is CIA agent - NY Daily News

 

[Coltsfan]

Isn't it more than bizarre!

Indian diplomat's father claims low-wage maid is CIA agent - NY Daily News

The maid who was allegedly paid just $3.31 an hour by an Indian diplomat is actually a CIA agent, the official’s father bizarrely claimed Saturday.

Uttam Khobragade, father of Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade, said during a Mumbai press conference that he suspects the allegations against his daughter by housekeeper Sangeeta Richard, 42, are part of an elaborate plot to ruin her reputation.

“Going by the developments that have taken place over the last one year, the government of India feels that it appears to be a conspiracy,” Uttam Khobragade said, according to The Economic Times newspaper.

“We suspect that Sangeeta Richard is an agent of the CIA. We were made scapegoat in the whole case. Devyani is a brave woman and she has been performing all her duties regularly,” said Uttam, who is a former civil service officer.


Khobragade, 39, pleaded not guilty Dec. 12 to charges of visa fraud and making false statements.

Prosecutors said the diplomat submitted a bogus visa application for Richard, claiming the maid would earn $10 an hour when in reality she was paid a paltry $3.31 an hour.

“I’m happy to confirm she’s not a CIA agent,” said David Beasley, spokesman for Safe Horizon, a victims assistance agency helping Richard.

The charges against Khobragade sent shockwaves through India, where government officials insisted she should be afforded diplomatic immunity.

Indian authorities took particular exception that Khobragade had been strip searched after being arrested.

The diplomatic skirmish became so intense that Secretary of State Kerry expressed regret over the handling of the arrest.

But that didn’t stop the Indian government from retaliating by enacting a freeze on the duty-free import of food and alcohol for U.S. consulates and also ordered the removal of concrete barricades in front of the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi.

Devyani’s lawyer, Daniel Arshack, had no comment.

Read more: Indian diplomat's father claims low-wage maid is CIA agent - NY Daily News

Not sure if that report is true, but if it is, someone in GOI needs to tell Devyani's father to STFU.
His moronic statements like this are not going to help her daughter's case. And if he thinks that he can pressure the US into letting her go by making these ludicrous allegations, he is grossly mistaken.

 

[Enemy]

Not sure if that report is true, but if it is, someone in GOI needs to tell Devyani's father to STFU.
His moronic statements like this are not going to help her daughter's case. And if he thinks that he can pressure the US into letting her go by making these ludicrous allegations, he is grossly mistaken.

Earlier he said if US does not drop charges and lets her go, he will fast unto death!

US must withdraw charges or I'll fast unto death: Devyani Khobragade's father - Times Of India

 

[Coltsfan]

Well, this is what happens when you take an Indian slave to US, make her work long hours for peanuts, and assume she'll continue to do that since her family is back in India.

US responded properly. I'm surprised more women organizations aren't coming out in support of Sangita Richard in India.