A grand jury here has returned a new indictment against Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade for visa fraud and making false statements, two days after a US judge dismissed a similar indictment because she had diplomatic immunity.
Neither Khobragade’s lawyer Daniel Arshack nor US attorney in Manhattan Preet Bharara’s office offered immediate comments on the new indictment, which effectively returns the case to where it was before Wednesday’s dismissal.
With Khobragade in India, the new indictment does not appear to have any immediate practical consequences.
Khobragade’s arrest last December and a subsequent strip search drew outrage in India, causing a diplomatic rift between the US and India.
Slamming the US prosecutor’s decision to re-indict Devyani Khobragade in a visa fraud case, the Indian government said it could impact bilateral efforts to build the Indo-US relationship.
Reacting to the second indictment, India said it was an “unnecessary” step and the case had no merit. The MEA spokesperson said, “We are disappointed that the relevant office of the US department of justice chose to obtain a second indictment against Devyani Khobragade, despite the fact that the first indictment and arrest warrant were dismissed earlier this week.”
Syed Akbaruddin said, “This was an unnecessary step. Any measures consequent to this decision in the US, will unfortunately impact upon efforts on both sides to build strategic partnership, to which both sides are committed.”
The dismissal of the indictment by the US judge a few days ago left a clear route for the prosecutor to re-file another case against Khobragade.
The indictment states that the diplomat “knowingly made” multiple false representations and presented false information to US authorities to obtain a visa for a personal domestic worker. An arrest warrant was issued against Khobragade.
After a couple of months of strained relations, India and the US have just begun to pick up the pieces of the relationship since Khobragade episode cropped up. US energy secretary Ernest Moniz came to India last week, a visit that was cancelled during the diplomatic stand-off. Assistant secretary of state for South Asia, Nisha Biswal too made her first visit here.
Neither Khobragade’s lawyer Daniel Arshack nor US attorney in Manhattan Preet Bharara’s office offered immediate comments on the new indictment, which effectively returns the case to where it was before Wednesday’s dismissal.
With Khobragade in India, the new indictment does not appear to have any immediate practical consequences.
Khobragade’s arrest last December and a subsequent strip search drew outrage in India, causing a diplomatic rift between the US and India.
Slamming the US prosecutor’s decision to re-indict Devyani Khobragade in a visa fraud case, the Indian government said it could impact bilateral efforts to build the Indo-US relationship.
Reacting to the second indictment, India said it was an “unnecessary” step and the case had no merit. The MEA spokesperson said, “We are disappointed that the relevant office of the US department of justice chose to obtain a second indictment against Devyani Khobragade, despite the fact that the first indictment and arrest warrant were dismissed earlier this week.”
Syed Akbaruddin said, “This was an unnecessary step. Any measures consequent to this decision in the US, will unfortunately impact upon efforts on both sides to build strategic partnership, to which both sides are committed.”
The dismissal of the indictment by the US judge a few days ago left a clear route for the prosecutor to re-file another case against Khobragade.
The indictment states that the diplomat “knowingly made” multiple false representations and presented false information to US authorities to obtain a visa for a personal domestic worker. An arrest warrant was issued against Khobragade.
After a couple of months of strained relations, India and the US have just begun to pick up the pieces of the relationship since Khobragade episode cropped up. US energy secretary Ernest Moniz came to India last week, a visit that was cancelled during the diplomatic stand-off. Assistant secretary of state for South Asia, Nisha Biswal too made her first visit here.
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