As India renewed demand that the US drop cases against its diplomat Devyani Khobragade, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid remained “unavailable” on Wednesday night to take a call from US Secretary of State John Kerry in an apparent rebuff to the Obama administration.
A day after Kerry expressed regret over the Devyani’s arrest, Khurshid demanded that the case against India’s Deputy Counsel General Khobragade should be withdrawn.
“The case does not deserve to be pursued,” Khurshid said, adding, “Our relationship has a lot of investment...And we have to deal with it sensibly.”
Khurshid said he received a call from Kerry on Wednesday night but he was not available at that time. “I was not available when John Kerry called. We are trying to log a time for a call this evening. Kerry is in the Philippines and there is a huge time difference,” he said.
It is obvious that Khurshid was sugar-coating the rebuff he inflicted on Kerry. Few will believe that India’s Foreign Minister will not take a call from the US Secretary of State unless it was a deliberate act. Also, the time gap between the Philippines and New Delhi is merely two-and-half hours and not “huge” as claimed by Khurshid.
“I have sought details of what happened in the case of the diplomat,” he said, asserting that the matter should not be pursued and be withdrawn. Though Khurshid claimed he and Kerry could talk on Thursday evening, nothing of that sort had materialised till late in the night, fuelling speculation that the standoff may drag for a while.
With an anti-US hysteria sweeping across the country, and the US pushed on the back foot for the first time by any nation such a way, the Americans are trying to find a way out despite justifying the arrest of Devyani. On Wednesday night, Kerry called up National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon and expressed regret over the incident while US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman spoke to Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh.
Reports said that the two discussed specific steps to resolve the situation arising out of the arrest of Devyani Khobragade in the US. During the 20-25 minute long call, Sherman also distanced the State Department from the statement issued by US Attorney Preet Bharara on the diplomat’s case, a PTI report said.
In New Delhi, this is being seen as positive signals from the US side. A possible way out could emerge if India succeeds in its effort to accord full diplomatic immunity to Khobragade by transferring her to country’s Permanent Mission to UN, New York. This will immune her to any prosecution in the US and give a face saver to the US not to persist with the visa fraud case, in which she has given USD 250,000 bond and surrendered her passport.
Meanwhile, reports said that upset over the maltreatment Devyani, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has directed Khurshid and Shivshankar Menon to ensure "full resolution" of the issue. Singh was briefed by Menon on his telephonic talk with Kerry, sources said.
Kerry, who called up Menon, expressed regret over the arrest and strip-search of Khobragade in New York last week and said "this unfortunate public issue" should not hurt the "close and vital relationship" with India.