Bharat Rakshak

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 07:49**

putnanja wrote:The Americans actually run a sort of grocery store catering to themselves and other diplomats in New Delhi. Why is GoI allowing this sort of behavior?

Here is something surreal. I was inside the compound once (for some personal work) and had to wait in the cafeteria as the concerned person was not yet in the office. As it was an ungodly hour (7:30 AM

) and I did not have breakfast before starting from home, I wanted to have it at the cafe as I was whiling away my time till 8 Am anyway. There were two menus - on one side they have some mouth watering Upma, Idli, Dosa etc. on the other side, aumlette and toast, bacon strips, sausage links, steak etc. I went for the left side of the menu and was told that I cannot have it as I am an US citizen. Had to do with aum-lette and toast as by then I left bacon and steak far behind.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 07:52**

So they run a $5M/year(Rs 30 Crores/year) turnover grocery in the Embassy for other diplomats also.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 07:53**

All said and done, when push comes to a shove, I will back US which is my country now but certainly fight for India above every other second country. That is how things are going to pan out for me on a personal plane.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:10**

Most US installations including "safe" foreign military bases have a base commissary and "PX" where you can get US items at a reduced price. I would think most US embassies have them too. They all also have "clubs" which are basically bars that serve US style cocktails and beer at reduced prices. It's part of the benefits. These are also available at US domestic military bases. Standard operating procedure. No drinking allowed in Afghanistan however. The Brits, French and Italians swill like crazy though.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:12**

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/in ... reams.html

Fear and loathing in New York: Former diplomat Prabhu Dayal reveals how Indian envoys to the US can fall victim to maids pursuing their American dreams

By Prabhu Dayal

Devyani Khobragade's arrest has resulted in an unprecedented Indo-US row which shows little sign of abating. Since I was Consul General in New York from September 2008 till February 2013, I feel duty-bound to put the situation in a full and correct perspective.

Devyani worked as my deputy towards the end of my term. Moreover, I also faced a lawsuit about which some misinformed comments continue to be made in sections of the media.

I met (Devyani's domestic help) Sangeeta Richard several times at the consulate. She not only seemed happy and cheerful, but also struck me as being quite well-groomed and educated - not the usual type of domestic worker.

Given the recent history of problems faced by the consulate, I advised Devyani to be careful. I also told her that there were plenty of people around who could misguide Sangeeta and create trouble.

Cases of desertion by domestic assistants are not new. For decades, domestic assistants accompanying our diplomats to the US have gone missing, preferring to stay there illegally and pursue their dollar dreams.

Countless security guards, including many from the police and paramilitary services, have also done likewise.

Although the US authorities have invariably been informed whenever this has happened, they have done nothing to nab them. As is well known, the US has a very large number of illegal, undocumented aliens who provide cheap labour.

However, in October 2000, the US Congress enacted the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (TVPA). In terms of this Act, our domestic assistants who abscond can now obtain a trafficking visa by alleging that they were subjected to involuntary servitude and not paid wages as per US laws. They can get a three year T Visa which gets converted to full resident status.

Naturally, such persons allege that they would face extreme hardship if they were deported back, as Sangeeta Richard has done. In return, they have to cooperate with the law enforcement agencies against the alleged traffickers - their former employers.

Then in 2010, New York state enacted the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, after which there has been a spate of lawsuits filed by domestic workers.

HOOK OR CROOK

Devyani Khobragade may have fallen victim to a common menace - maids desperately seeking green cards

It is no secret that many Indians go to the US and try to stay on by hook or crook. Thousands of Sikhs have managed to obtain political asylum by alleging that they are being persecuted in India and thus getting full resident-status.

Privately, many of them admit that they only took the asylum route as it was the only way they could get a Green Card. However, the US authorities continue to give asylum visas to many Sikh applicants, blindly ignoring the fact that the Sikhs are a thriving community in India, and that our Prime Minister is himself a Sikh.

However, the asylum visa is not available to everybody. This is where the TVPA has opened the doors to people like Sangeeta Richard, who can obtain official passports as domestic assistants of our diplomats, get an A3 visa from the US Embassy, reach US shores, work there for some months, abscond and then obtain a T Visa.

The visa fraud allegedly committed by Devyani Khobragade was in fact committed by Sangeeta Richard as she misrepresented her terms of employment to the US Embassy during her interview with the Consular officer to get an A3 domestic worker visa, which would later enable her to leapfrog to a trafficking T Visa.

Now, a few words about two earlier cases which took place in New York.

Shanti Gurung worked as a housekeeper for Dr Neena Malhotra, Consul for over three years. I met her often as she would come to the consulate to attend functions such as Republic Day, Independence Day, Diwali, Baisakhi etc, as well as music concerts, and she was always happy and contented.

I was shocked when she went missing on the eve of Dr Neena's departure from New York on transfer, and even more shocked when she filed a lawsuit a year later against her employer alleging confinement, forced labour, slavery, illtreatment etc. No doubt, she did so to obtain a T Visa.

Mrs Santosh Bhardwaj worked as my housekeeper for two years in India and four years in Morocco before joining me as my domestic assistant in New York in February 2009. Eleven months later, in January 2010, she absconded from the consulate building where she lived.

Seventeen months after that, she filed a suit against me alleging slavery, forced labour, non-payment of full wages etc. She alleged that she was not given proper accommodation and was made to sleep in a storage area. She also made an allegation about an incident of sexual harassment. These allegations were prominently reported in the media.

Six weeks later, her lawyers filed an amended suit in which the allegation about sexual harassment and being made to sleep in a storage area were voluntarily dropped.

Under US judicial practice, a plaintiff enjoys absolute litigation privilege and can amend a suit by adding or deleting charges. However, these and many other allegations had already received wide publicity in the media and continue to be referred to even now.

The fact was that she was not made to sleep in a storage area but was provided a fully-furnished one bedroom apartment in the consulate building with heating, air-conditioning, television and an attached bathroom, and there were many witnesses to this fact.

As regards sexual harassment, this charge was also completely false. The media gave very little coverage to the voluntary dropping of these charges.

She was so well treated in Delhi and Morocco that she voluntarily went with us to New York. Did our treatment towards her suddenly change so drastically in New York that it was tantamount to slavery and involuntary servitude?

The suit alleged that I had not paid her wages at $10 an hour as per the contract. Here, I would like to draw attention to the website of the US State Department which states the following: "As of March 2011, the Department has decided that no deductions are allowed for lodging, medical care, medical insurance or travel. As of April 2012,deductions taken for meals are also no longer allowed".

However, Mrs Bhardwaj worked for me in New York from January 2009 till February 2010, when deductions for perks were allowed by the State Department. If perks are included, the emoluments of my domestic assistant were considerably more than what she was to get under the contract. A fully furnished one bedroom apartment in the Upper East part of New York does not come for less than $2,500!

Added to this were the expenses towards water, electricity, heating, air-conditioning, food, medical cover, travel passages (including for home leave) plus a handsome salary.

BIASED & HIGH-HANDED

The emoluments of all officials posted by the MEA to Embassies and Consulates include salary and perks; the emoluments of a domestic assistant accompanying an Indian diplomat are built into the officer's own package, and also include salary and perks.

It is only after March 2011 that the US State Department has begun to disallow deductions for perks for domestic assistants. Litigation in the US is a very expensive and stressful process. Most lawsuits end up in an out of court settlement without acknowledgement of wrongdoing.

I, too, had no option but to settle the case. India's view has been that the domestic assistants of our diplomats hold official passports and should be outside the purview of US labour laws.The US side has not agreed to this, insisting that US laws apply to them. This impasse continues.

What about the future? We should either get the US to agree to our position or change our present arrangement relating to the domestic assistants. Our officers should not be caught in this sort of situation arising from how the Ministry of External Affairs interprets the emoluments given to domestic assistants and how differently the US authorities interpret them. This would prevent the sort of ordeal which Dr Neena, Devyani and I myself have gone through.

It is understood that the MEA is trying to revamp the system and may itself sign contracts with domestic workers instead of officers having to do so.

Will this revamped arrangement shield officials posted at our Consulates fully? I am afraid not, for one must recall the case of Krittika Biswas, a 12th grade student and daughter of a Vice-Consul serving under me in New York. She was arrested and handcuffed in front of her fellow students at her school on the charge of cyber-bullying one of her teachers, although she asserted that she had a diplomatic passport. She was not allowed to contact her parents or anyone till the evening, and was kept in a detention centre for 28 hours with prostitutes and drug addicts in the same manner as Devyani.

My colleagues and I had to run from pillar to post to get her released. She was not taken back to her school but had to attend a sort of reform school. Later, it was discovered that it was not Krittika but another student who was responsible for the cyber-bullying, but he was not arrested.

What can one make of this except that the New York law enforcement agencies were biased and high-handed?

The Krittika Biswas case makes me apprehensive that given the US position on immunity, even if we were to revamp our system relating to domestic assistants, we will not be able to guarantee that officials in our Consulates will not be arrested or dragged into law courts for some reason or another in future.

The US is a highly litigious country where suing people is a sort of favourite pastime. Family members of consulate officials are not given any ID cards and have absolutely no immunity. Hence, they are even more vulnerable.

An atmosphere of fear already pervades our Consulate in New York, and the New York Consulate is no longer a sought-after posting for this reason.

What are we to do in such a situation? Some of my former colleagues go to the extent of saying that if diplomats posted in our Consulates in the USA do not enjoy immunity, then we should close down these Consulates and do all Consular work from the Embassy in Washington DC, where our officials enjoy immunity.

This is not so cynical as it may sound. Firstly, Consular work relating to passports, visas, OCI cards, PIO cards has already been outsourced. Instead of bringing the documents to the Consulates, the outsourcing company could courier them to the Embassy.

Secondly, a large number of persons already send their applications to the Consulates by mail, and they would instead have to send these to Washington DC. What difference would it make if someone living in Boston has to send the application to Washington DC instead of to New York?

Of course,the Embassy's consular Section would have to be considerably strengthened for handling the additional load. All other work such as information, culture, outreach and economic would also have to be done from Washington alone, which is not so difficult in today's age of instant electronic communications.

DON'T DRAG FEET

As regards all the endless protocol work involving receiving and seeing off delegations which keep coming to New York, it could be done by the Permanent Mission to the UN, whose officials enjoy immunity.

At present, the protocol load is shared by the Permanent Mission and the Consulate. Again, the protocol wing of the Permanent Mission will have to be augmented.

I know that this suggestion by my former colleagues may be dismissed as being too cynical. There is no doubt, however, that our officers posted at the Consulate in New York have begun to feel very insecure after all these recent cases, and the same may also be true for the other Consulates in Chicago, San Francisco, Houston and Atlanta.

How will India protect its diplomats posted to the consulates given the US position on immunity? Drastic situations call for drastic steps, and if we can't learn from bad experiences, then we alone are to be blamed. Foot-dragging will not get us anywhere.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:16**

nawabs wrote:Now, India and US clash over Modi's Mumbai rally

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 758644.cms

It is learnt that the US insisted before Indian authorities that people likely to attend the rally on Sunday could be a threat to the consulate and its officials. Indian officials maintained throughout that the security issue raised by the US was a red herring and that the real issue in the ongoing crisis was the humiliation of an Indian diplomat and the subsequent US action to "evacuate" the family of Sangeeta Richard to New York.

The breathtaking latent contempt US has for India once agian surface through this brazen demand. Frankly, I would say more Indians are under threat by jack-booted fascist US marshalls and law enforcement and police, than any American would ever be in Mumbai.

I wish India would counter this brazen demand with a demand by declaring that India will hold US responsible for any terrorist attack by TSP against India given its military and other aid to TSP which it uses primarily to target India. US military relationship with TSP is a threat to India, period.

On another note, guys, one thing I hope is that the pettiness on both sides, India & US, does not plummet further. As much as we all know that PB and UZ are pompous Uncle Tom lackeys who are showing their worth to go after Indians, but I think, on India's side, eminent ambassadors like GP and others relentlessly venting their fury against these two non worthies amounts to demeaning themselves.

I mean its now clear to every one of us, as JEMJi very succinctly pointed out, the humiliation heaped on DK was a willful deliberate attempt by white big-wigs in US govt to put India in its place. My guess is that as the end game in AfPak unfolds, India not agreeing to US demands on soothing TSP's anal itch by completely withdrawing from Afghanistan is the main irritant. US simply does not see India as anything more than a 2-bit banana republic (along with TSP) to be molded to suit its interests. So eminent Indians like GP going after pipsqueaks like PB will only look comical to the real power brokers in US.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:23**

matrimcji,
cheer up

you dont have to take it personally. Have fun during vacation.Pliss to ignore/take unsolicited remark.How one wishes if some of our establishment honchos have a fraction of this integrity.Bharatha Varsha -the most incredible mix of SDRE+TFTA elements.

As some wag said it,sau me assi beimaan,phir be mera bharat mahaan!For how long with this mix, is the million $ ?

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:24**

One of the sponsors of Sangeeta Richards lawyer is Ernest Young. EY takes statutory audits and consultancy in India illegally through their local agents as they are neither recoganised CA or advocate firm in India. I think EY should be charged and prosecuted.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:35**

@CRamS

My headline would have been: US interferes with India on Modi's Mumbai Rally!

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:42**

ramana wrote:So they run a $5M/year(Rs 30 Crores/year) turnover grocery in the Embassy for other diplomats also.

It's not a lot of turnover considering an average American family spends about $200/week on groceries and food. At $5M/year that works out to about $100K/week which would serve around 500 families a week. Since the US Govt. is subsidizing the cost, they should pay import duties.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:46**

Guys, a thought experiment. As I read all the racist and condescending op-eds in US newspapers, along with of course others by MUTUs, one of the common themes, at least among MUTUs is that DK is part of India's burgeoning middle class, and hence Indian middle class have so much sympathy for her, while nothing for poor Sangeeta Rchards, who is nothing but an exploited slave, and this reflects the endemic class/caste consciousness of Hindus. I might add that they can't harp too much on the caste angle because DK happens to be a Dalit. So the class angle is the theme.

So my thought or Gadanken experiment. Just for a moment, imagine if instead of DK, we had another diplomat, say a Brahmin male. Can you imagine the field day the US racists and MUTUs would have had in demonizing Brahmins and Hinduism. It would have been mind boggling. I would wager to bet that the story would have made round the clock headlines on mainstream US media, CNN/Fox etc, on how enlightened US came to the aid and liberated a slave. How infinity more civilized and exceptional America is bla bla. The MUTUs would have gone berserk each one competing with other in their self loathing and self righteousness. I would have even seen Pultzers prizes being won someone in the NYT/WP doing a 10-part or 20-part expose on the evil caste exploitation by Brahmins against Dalits/Christians.

Lost in all this, apart from the humiliating treatment meted out to DK and why it was done, is the FACT that in today's India, while no doubt there is caste consciousness as much as there is race consciousness in US at a social level, and it is deep, very deep, the legal barriers to upward mobility do not exit. But all of India's other economic/political problems make the upward mobility of disadvantaged groups that much more difficult. And this is true as much in God's own country USA, as it is in India. It would require a MUTU of enormous intelligence and I might add balls to write an op-ed along these lines in a US newspaper. (Then again such a person would not be a MUTU

.). But the easy route to stardom is to be a mouthpiece for conventional stereotypes.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:49**

1)The US bleats about a market economy.Does it make any sense for India to pay its domestic servants inflated wages.

2)There has to be a more satisfactory arrangement devised by GOI.Also it is wrong for Prabhu Dayal to say SR misrepresented facts to US consular official in India to get A3 visa.Thats a ridiculous statement.Legally,she was going by the letter of the agreement with DK.

Its an extraordinary position for a GOI official to take,when govt apparatus in India harasses the common and law abiding citizen.The GOI should have a better mechanism for the domestic assistant to get the A3 visa.That defence by Mr Dayal is a poor excuse.We are told that US winked at such transgressions.Had the GOTUS been asking GOI to change their practices?Had GOTUS given an ultimatum?There had already been two issues.One can understand if GOI had not become alert after one incident.A second one had occured and this third issue was dragging for months.Thats serious dereliction of duty by Foreign office mandarins.This issue needs to be highighted,independent of US thuggishness.The US is not a friendly nation.We have a transactional relationship with them.The diplomats should have been better prepared.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:51**

>> In addition to the commissary, the ACSA runs a restaurant, a video club, a beverages and snack bar, a sports field with special equipment, a swimming pool, a bowling alley and a gym on the embassy premises.

and they must be charging money for all these facilities incl from non-US fellow diplomats of other consulates. this is what happens when you give people acres and acres of land and look the other way when they push the envelope, or maybe throw some bones by letting you and your kids in(if you are in decision making power).

I have heard the american school in delhi though originally intended for their diplomatic kids, expanded to kids of other consulates and then to elite delhi indians with connections as well. its supposed to be a badge that you have arrived if your kids are there. annual fees would at par with costliest pvt schools in mainland US.
http://www.aes.ac.in/index.php?sec=40
fees is $20,000/annum basic for junior level classes.
cafetaria menus http://www.aes.ac.in/teachers.php?teach ... tpage=2363

so clearly they have put in place the levers of influence in selective access to their 'gora' places to keep the indian senior babus and industrialists under control.

ofcourse our babus have setup their own multi crore Sanskriti school using govt funds = for their sons and daughters only
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/in ... money.html

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 08:58**

^^^I believe there is a similar school in Mumbai as well for US consulate personnel families.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:05**

nawabs wrote:Now, India and US clash over Modi's Mumbai rally

These idiots are burning all bridges with a future PM - I must say, I wish good luck and good fortune to the decent, hard working people of the US as the US SD is doing everything to win new enemies where none existed.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:06**

^^^ I studied at the American School in Jakarta and my dad worked for ICAO, a UN affiliated body. And there were kids of many nationalities including kids whose parents were from the Indonesian Foreign Service. Only countries not represented in that school were from behind the Iron Country, in those days.

So yes, the American School was available to children of different nationalities including Asian. BTW, my dad took me out of that school because he realised that the standards were so pathetic, I would regress in my education, and not be able to get into a normal Indian school!

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:07**

Prabhu Dayal brings up a good point. The US is a highly litigious society where law suits occur at the drop of a hat. I have to agree with him about closing the consulates and perhaps the New York consulate should in fact be shut down as a first step and the consulate functions consolidated in to the embassy in Washington D.C.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:11**

^^^^

I think besides the term "Ambulance Chasers", we should coin the term "Maid Chasers". Litigation, at the drop of a hat, seems to be a thriving industry there.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:12**

Mort Walker wrote:Prabhu Dayal brings up a good point. The US is a highly litigious society where law suits occur at the drop of a hat. I have to agree with him about closing the consulates and perhaps the New York consulate should in fact be shut down as a first step and the consulate functions consolidated in to the embassy in Washington D.C.

Very good point. And demand they do the same in India. Close down their consulates! That way we can have our rallies without interference!

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:14**

One of the sponsors of Sangeeta Richards lawyer is Ernest Young. EY takes statutory audits and consultancy in India illegally through their local agents as they are neither recoganised CA or advocate firm in India. I think EY should be charged and prosecuted.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:17**

The NE US and Florida are notorious for law suits. Even California to some degree, but not as bad. In the south like Atlanta and Houston frivolous law suits are less common - just take your gun off the gun rack on your pickup truck.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:19**

vic wrote:One of the sponsors of Sangeeta Richards lawyer is Ernest Young. EY takes statutory audits and consultancy in India illegally through their local agents as they are neither recoganised CA or advocate firm in India. I think EY should be charged and prosecuted.

Are you sure this is the same as the consultancy firm? I though they were Ernst and Young where as the lawyer's actual name is Ernest Young?

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:25**

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/d ... el-leaders

Covert CIA program helped Colombia kill rebel leaders
The multi-billion dollar program had the NSA provide 'substantial eavesdropping help' to the Colombian government

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:28**

one could get acres and acres in US too and a private airport for chartered flights

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:33**

I am not talking about the lawyer but the people on board of her action group. There was a list on this thread, a couple of days back.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:41**

Lost in all this, apart from the humiliating treatment meted out to DK and why it was done, is the FACT that in today's India, while no doubt there is caste consciousness as much as there is race consciousness in US at a social level, and it is deep, very deep, the legal barriers to upward mobility do not exit. But all of India's other economic/political problems make the upward mobility of disadvantaged groups that much more difficult. And this is true as much in God's own country USA, as it is in India. It would require a MUTU of enormous intelligence and I might add balls to write an op-ed along these lines in a US newspaper. (Then again such a person would not be a MUTU .). But the easy route to stardom is to be a mouthpiece for conventional stereotypes.

I made a reference to the smoking of marijuana, this is a surrogate of the structural partiality of US society and the legal system.
The American Civil Liberties Union has a well researched article on the differential legal consequences of smoking marijuana by blacks and whites.

It is a little puzzling to find the 'caste' (actually the caste vs non-caste)system so inhumane but not recognising the same in the Jim Crow laws, lynchings, segregation and economic exploitation.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 09:54**

A few pages ago I too said to close the NY consulate as there is a local law problem. In return shut the Hyd consulate down.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 10:03**

Guys, I am curious if the usual India haters, Adhothi, Pankaj Misra, Kancha Illiah etc have weighed in on DK episode, especially Kancha who himself is a Dalit and a compulsive Hindu hater.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 10:09**

CRamS wrote:US simply does not see India as anything more than a 2-bit banana republic (along with TSP) to be molded to suit its interests. So eminent Indians like GP going after pipsqueaks like PB will only look comical to the real power brokers in US.

The contempt for Indians (as in those casteist, darky, spindly legged, small appendage, weird smelling, funny accent, very vocal, pretender-type Indians in India) was always there, but there was grudging respect for bureaucracy. The beginning of the end of this was right after Iraq war and puppet was installed in Nai Dilli when under Colin Powell there was open disrespect for every third world nation, going by the lies he ejaculated in that security council meeting.

Only way out of this is for the banana to spread it's influence in Asia, one way or another. India was always the country that seemed eager to take the easy way out, and ride the short-cut to success and great-power on the coat-tails of an unkil. Even if that unkil openly spat upon us or mocked us, there still were any who would ignore it and carry on as if nothing happened. Especially the apologists. It's that attitude which gave the free pass to the evangelists and subversive elements to spread their wings in India.

Guys, I am curious if the usual India haters, Adhothi, Pankaj Misra, Kancha Illiah etc have weighed in on DK episode, especially Kancha who himself is a Dalit and a compulsive Hindu hater.

they have common sense to figure out that talking about this is stepping on IED.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 10:12**

Singha wrote: fees is $20,000/annum basic for junior level classes.
cafetaria menus http://www.aes.ac.in/teachers.php?teach ... tpage=2363
l

My info is that private residential schools in US esp the ones in Mass. cost close to 40K PA. The American school in Mumbai is open to US citizens - that much I am certain. Not sure of access given to others.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 10:35**

CRamS wrote:Guys, I am curious if the usual India haters, Adhothi, Pankaj Misra, Kancha Illiah etc have weighed in on DK episode, especially Kancha who himself is a Dalit and a compulsive Hindu hater.

<OT>
Kancha Illaih is not a Dalit, but an OBC (Kuruma golla) . He has unwittingly revealed in one early articles from his college days, that his own mother(who was Kuruma caste leader) scolded him when he brought home Dalit Madiga boys as they were "polluting" the Kuruma caste "culture".
But from time to he shamelessly lies, referring to himself as a Dalit.
</OT>

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 10:45**

NDTV has launched a full scale attack against Devyani on the pretext that rights of Domestic Servants need to be respected. As usual JNU jollahwallas are voicing their support to this line of NDTV.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 11:19**

Philip wrote:Outrageous!While all this brouhaha has been going on and diplomatic duels being fought to prove that we are not a banana republic,the New Ind.Express reports in a piece "Lessons from Diplomatic Row" by former Union Power Sec. EAS Sharma,that the cabinet on Dec. 20th rushed through a 4,000crore deal to buy more C-130J Hercules transports! What message is that for Uncle Sam? A great Christmas present for O'Bomber and Kerry.The US establishment must be rolling over in laughter at the "Surrender Singh" regime's buffoonery.

I don't appreciate what the angst on this is about. We should continue to evaluate, shortlist and come to a point of placing orders for Amerikhan maal, only where suitable and required by us.

Then store it in a "bait box" pending which way the wind blows diplomatically. I am sure the Khans will salivate. Jobs and $$ for a heavily debt ridden economy with the $$ going south as a reserve currency of the world!

Would the Khans want to lose all this over a maid and trumped up charges?

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 11:24**

Prabhu Dayals' article is excellent, and we finally have some insight from the IFS end into this whole sordid affair.

Unfortunately, in India, the dubious role of Mrs Khobragade's family-financial affairs, reserved category shenanigans, have been used effectively to blunt outrage many would otherwise feel.

But the common folks dont run policy and hence such ebbs and flows matter little, the establishments feelings matter, the babus et al. And those folks will remember this issue. Modi is unlikely to be as dismissive of Indian interests as MMS has been, either

I think Mr Dayals suggestion to close down the additional consulates makes sense. Run everything from DC.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 11:25**

rajanb wrote:
Philip wrote:Outrageous!While all this brouhaha has been going on and diplomatic duels being fought to prove that we are not a banana republic,the New Ind.Express reports in a piece "Lessons from Diplomatic Row" by former Union Power Sec. EAS Sharma,that the cabinet on Dec. 20th rushed through a 4,000crore deal to buy more C-130J Hercules transports! What message is that for Uncle Sam? A great Christmas present for O'Bomber and Kerry.The US establishment must be rolling over in laughter at the "Surrender Singh" regime's buffoonery.
I don't appreciate what the angst on this is about. We should continue to evaluate, shortlist and come to a point of placing orders for Amerikhan maal, only where suitable and required by us.

Then store it in a "bait box" pending which way the wind blows diplomatically. I am sure the Khans will salivate. Jobs and $$ for a heavily debt ridden economy with the $$ going south as a reserve currency of the world!

Would the Khans want to lose all this over a maid and trumped up charges?

The issue sir is that some of the gear acquired by us from the Khan, was probably not the best, or chosen for political considerations. We probably won't know until after the fact.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 11:29**

Kati wrote:^^^

Apparently massa consulates haven't furnished the employment info yet, and asking for more time. The thinking is that some skeletons may tumble out of the closet.....
but, well, MMS and dynesty may forgive them as usual....

What happened to laws are equal and must be followed to the T and chatter of how uncivilized others are and so on and forth?

The most powerful and most civilized country USA isn't exactly eager to come forth with details required.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 12:02**

@Karan M

That is why the

only where suitable and required by us.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 12:04**

Where exactly is DK right now? Thanks

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 12:16**

DK has been given UN ID Card. So now on she enjoys full diplomatic immunity.

Posted: **23 Dec 2013 12:48**

we should close down these Consulates and do all Consular work from the Embassy in Washington DC, where our officials enjoy immunity.

The Aadhar enrollment model can be used here for visa applicants. Essentially, everyone Indian or foreigner submits fingerprints and iris scans and gets a number, after which the embassy can issue documents. This enrollment is already done by private vendors, so the outsourcing company that handles applications can handle enrollment as well.

Bharat Rakshak

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