Devyani Khobragade divested of her duties in MEA disciplinary action

The action comes a week after the diplomat spoke to a news channel about her arrest and strip search in New York

The government has divested diplomat Devyani Khobragade from her duties in the Ministry of External Affairs, days after she spoke to the media without seeking permission

A disciplinary as well as an administrative action of “compulsory wait” has been taken against the diplomat, who had hit the headlines last year after she was arrested in the US in a visa fraud case, even as the foreign service officer remained defiant that she has not done anything wrong.

An MEA spokesperson said the administrative action against the official has been taken in relation to an ongoing inquiry against her in a vigilance case.

The action comes a week after the mother-of-two spoke to a news channel about her arrest and strip search in New York. During the interview, Khobragade said that her “kids were born in the US and are considered US citizens”, a statement that reportedly took the ministry by surprise.
 

Ruling out that she will resign after being put on “compulsory wait”, she defended her action of taking the US passport for her two children, who were given diplomatic passports at the time of her posting to America, saying under the service rules, minor children can have two passports and there was nothing wrong in that.