Fabricated and motivated allegations against Consul General of India in
In response to questions, the Official Spokesperson said:
“We are disappointed and surprised at the allegations against Consul General (CG) of
Mr. Prabhu Dayal is a senior diplomat of impeccable personal and professional integrity.
We are disappointed and deeply concerned that Indian diplomats and their family members, should be targetted in such a manner in a friendly country like
From Wall Street Journal
India is fighting back against what it believes is the poor treatment of its U.S.-based diplomats in an escalating spat with Washington, but it’s unclear exactly what it wants the Obama administration to do about it The Ministry of External Affairs, in a statement last night, said it was “disappointed and surprised” by allegations made in a civil lawsuit filed this week in a New York district court on behalf of a former maid of India’s consul general in the city, Prabhu Dayal.
The maid, Santosh Bhardwaj, is claiming unspecified damages and alleges her former employer treated her like a slave. Mr. Dayal denies the allegations. The MEA statement said Mr. Dayal had “impeccable personal and professional integrity” and the charges against him “appear to be motivated and baseless.”
The suit is the latest episode of what
Then, just a few weeks ago, the 18-year-old daughter of the Indian vice consul in
The new allegations against the consul general appeared to be too much for the Ministry of External Affairs, which put out a stinging statement.
“We are disappointed and deeply concerned that Indian diplomats and their family members should be targeted in such a manner in a friendly country like
But it remains unclear what
Vishnu Prakash, a spokesman for the ministry, declined to elaborate on whether
One gets the sense that
“Indian diplomats are being subjected to this kind of emotional trauma,” Mr. Prakash said. “What I’m articulating is a sense of concern among people.”
A spokesman for the
The issue is likely to spark debate about diplomatic immunity. Mr. Prakash says
Mr. Menon, the
The convention goes on to state that such immunity does not “apply in respect of a civil action either:
(a) arising out of a contract concluded by a consular officer or a consular employee in which he did not contract expressly or impliedly as an agent of the sending State; or
(b) by a third party for damage arising from an accident in the receiving State caused by a vehicle, vessel or aircraft.”
That seems to suggest the lawsuit brought on behalf of the maid can go ahead without diplomatic immunity coming into play and be heard on its own merits.