Indian diplomat expelled by US returns home

NEW DELHI - Devyani Khobragade, the Indian woman diplomat expelled by the United States, arrived in the Indian capital on an Air India passenger plane Friday night from New York, said local TV channel NDTV.

India Friday also expelled a US diplomat in retaliation against the arrest, humiliation and expulsion by the US od Khobragade, former vice consul general of the Indian Consulate General In New York.

India ordered an unnamed American diplomat based here to leave in 48 hours. The diplomat is at the same rank as Khobragade and is believed to be deeply involved in manipulating the case against Khobragade, said local media.

The diplomat said all charges against her were "false and baseless," according to Press Trust of India.

Her Indian maid accused her of making false statement and visa fraud by under paying her. The maid disappeared from the diplomat' s house before making the charges, raising speculation that she was taught to do so by some Americans. The maid's family members also left for US with alleged help of American diplomats in New Delhi before Khobragade was arrested last month.

Khobragade was reportedly arrested on December 15 in the street of New York, handcuffed, strip searched and put with drug addicts in a small cell before being released on a 250,000 US dollar bail.

New Delhi agreed on Thursday to a US request to "withdraw" Khobragade from New York, after Washington granted her full diplomatic immunity ahead of a criminal indictment by a US attorney against her over charges of visa fraud and making false statement.

The tit for tat expulsions between the two countries is the first in 33 years, after the expulsion of George Griffin, political counselor of US embassy here in retaliation against similar action being taken by the US against Prabhakar Menon, an Indian diplomat in the US capital.