As the Obama Admin-istration continued to claim that India’s Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade did not enjoy diplomatic immunity and hence she was arrested and handcuffed, New Delhi shifted her to a permanent mission in New York. This will entitle her to full diplomatic immunity.
According to procedures, Devyani will get the UN diplomatic card only after she gets clearance from the US State Department. In case, US authorities cooperate with India in this process, Devyani will not face further arrest or custodial interrogation. Meanwhile, India has said it is fully committed to ensuring security to all diplomats, including those from the US, within confines of its law and pledged full implementation of the Vienna Conventions while asking other countries to do the same.
With India stripping US diplomats and their families of privileges — including withdrawing airport passes and removing of security barricades around their embassy in reciprocation to the treatment meted out to Devyani, the US said it has conveyed at high levels its expectation that India will continue to fulfil its obligations under the Conventions and ensure safety and security of its diplomats.
Reacting to the US remarks, the spoke- sperson in External Affairs Ministry said, “The Vienna Conventions are global conventions and all countries are committed to it. For diplomats like us, the Vienna Conventions are the shield and armour that protect us.” The reason given for removal of barricades was denial of designated parking space for the Indian Embassy in Washington in January.
“We are committed to implementing Vienna Conventions, will implement them fully and ask them to be implemented fully. There is no change in security situation as regards any diplomats in India, including US diplomats. “We are fully committed to ensuring security of all the diplomats. We will provide full safety and security within confines of Indian law,” he added Responding to questions about the withdrawal of certain privileges given by India to US diplomats after the arrest and inhuman treatment of Devyani, the State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf told reporters that the US has conveyed to India its expectations in this regard.
“We’ll continue to work with India to ensure that all of our diplomats and consular officers are being afforded full rights and protections. Safety and security of our facilities as well is something we take very seriously, and we’ll keep working with the Indians on that,” she said.
Officials here also feel that the US, which has filed the case against Devyani unlike previous two cases involving Indian diplomats in New York -- Prabhu Dayal and Neena Malhotra -- has shown “poor diplomatic behaviour” towards an officer representing her country in official capacity. There is a strong demand that Devyani should be released unconditionally and all the charges against her should be dropped.
With nearly three cases involving senior Indian diplomats and their Indian-Based Domestic Assistants (IBDA) occurring in last three years, the Government is also in the process of reviewing the policy dealing with the issue. There is a move under which these IBDAs, who are entitled to boarding and lodging, return passage and holiday passage and same medical care as their bosses apart from cash payments, can be taken as contractual employees of Government. At present, they are treated as quasi-official staff.