US went overboard by insulting Indian official
While the allegations of visa fraud, relating to the employment of a domestic help, levelled against India's Deputy Consul General in New York Devyani Khobragade are embarrassing, the US authorities' treatment of the envoy is equally appalling. She was not accorded even the basic courtesies that all foreign diplomats are entitled to. There was reportedly no prior intimation by the US authorities, who did not take the trouble to give Ms Khobragade the opportunity to present her case. Instead, the diplomat, who was acting Consul General at the time, was arrested and handcuffed in front of her children in full public view last week, and released only after she posted a hefty a $2,50,000 bond.
American authorities may be within their rights to implement the laws of their land, but even in doing so they have to follow established international norms. There is simply no excuse for the harassment of Ms Khobragade — more so, since the case against her is hardly legally sound. The diplomat has been accused of not paying her Indian domestic help, serving her in New York, the minimum wage prescribed by local laws. Yet, it is unclear if New York laws apply in this case. Generally, foreign nationals serving as domestic workers in the US are protected by the same laws that apply to US citizens; however, there is a grey area with regard to those employed by foreign diplomats. Also, as the Ministry of External Affairs has pointed out, apart from the salary, Ms Khobragade bore her domestic help Sangeeta Richard's medical expenses, paid for her flight tickets and holiday costs — which the US authorities do not seem to have taken into account. Besides, Ms Richard's own actions have not been totally above par. For one, she has been absconding since June and, according to the Indian Embassy in New York, the US Government has done little to track her down. Second, when she disappeared, Ms Richard made off with $200 and Ms Khobragade's husband's mobile phone. And third, when she called back later, she demanded $10,000 from her employers. In fact, in September, the Delhi High Court issued an interim order prohibiting Ms Richard from taking any action against Ms Khobragade outside India, as it would be a violation of her employment contract.
There is more to this case than the seemingly obvious fact of Ms Khobragade paying Ms Richard less than minimum wage. New Delhi and Washington, DC, must work together to resolve this mess, especially since this is not the first time that such a case has erupted. In 2012, another Indian diplomat had to pay $1.5 million to her domestic help — despite a Delhi court ruling that any US court judgement would tantamount to interference in the Indian Government's right to decide on the employments terms of domestic helps serving its diplomatic officers. For now, it seems like Ms Khobragade is only the latest Indian envoy to be caught in the crosshairs of Indian and American laws.