M A I N   N E W S

Talks on to resolve stand-off with US, says Khurshid
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 21
India is hopeful of an early resolution of the ongoing stand-off with the United States over the inhuman treatment meted out to its Deputy Consul General Devyani Khobragade in New York in an alleged visa fraud case last week.

The United Nations, meanwhile, confirmed it had received and was processing an official notification from India to register Devyani as a staffer at the Permanent Mission of India (PMI) to the UN.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a function, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said the two countries were in conversation at different levels to take the issue to its logical end. The minister regretted that the unfortunate incident had disrupted his channels of communication with the US.

‘Ties with US extremely valuable’

We have an extremely exceptionally valuable relationship with the US and I do believe that they have similar sentiments about us...and we must understand the value of partnership.

Salman Khurshid, External Affairs Minister

US rights groups rally behind maid

New York, December 21
Several rights groups representing domestic workers in the US held a protest outside the Indian Consulate demanding “justice” for diplomat Devyani Khobragade’s maid, saying officials cannot use diplomatic immunity to “escape” accountability for their actions.

The National Domestic Workers Alliance led an hour-long demonstration yesterday, with participation from other groups like the Safe Horizon, the victim assistance agency representing Khobragade’s maid Sangeeta Richard, the Damayan Migrant Workers Association and the National Guestworker Alliance. The groups said Richard’s case was not an isolated one but a “systemic problem”. — PTI