The Indian Government has reportedly asked the U.S. Embassy not to screen any movies at the American Center without obtaining a licence.
All India Radio quoted government sources, as saying that a transgression notice has been sent to the American Embassy to comply with Government of India laws and Delhi Government regulations by January 20.
Failure to comply with the directive would result in the American Center having to cease screening films from January 21.
The new directive is yet another signal that India is serious about taking action against various transgressions of U.S. institutions in Delhi till a resolution is reached on the case of Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade.
Saturday;s reported development came hours after Washington is said to have said that it is in agreement with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that Khobragade's arrest and subsequent humiliation at the hands of American law enforcement officials had affected bilateral ties, and that efforts should be aimed at getting the relationship back on really strong footing.
"When you hear the Secretary (of State) express regret about something, that means that everything hasn't gone as it should," State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf told reporters at her daily news conference on Friday.
She was responding to questions about the remarks made by Prime Minister Singh on Friday in New Delhi that the arrest of Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade in the U.S. has resulted in hiccups in the bilateral ties.
A 1999-batch IFS officer, Ms. Khobragade, India's Deputy Consul General in New York, was arrested in December 12 on charges of making false declarations in a visa application for her maid. She was later released on payment of a USD 250,000 bond.
India is peeved that the United States has been describing this as an isolated incident, whereas it would like the case to be settled both bilaterally and under Vienna Convention norms governing diplomatic staff.
The American Center regularly screens movies for invited audiences apparently without a licence.
