- Devyani Khobragade returned India last week
- She was indicted on federal counts of visa fraud and making false statements
- The former deputy consul general was strip-searched after her arrest
New York (CNN) — The Indian diplomat whose arrest and strip search in New York City ignited a diplomatic spat between nations has filed a motion seeking the dismissal of the charges, her attorney said Wednesday.
The diplomat, Devyani Khobragade, left the U.S. last week amid federal charges that she lied on a visa application for her housekeeper. A dismissal of the charges against her would allow her to reenter the United States, where her husband and two daughters reside, said her attorney, Daniel Arshack. A hearing is set for January 31.
A motion filed in federal court Tuesday asked that the case be thrown out, saying the court “does not have jurisdiction over the Defendant due to the Defendant’s diplomatic status which provides her absolute immunity from criminal prosecution in the United States.
“Because Dr. Khobragade was cloaked in diplomatic immunity at the time of her arrest on December 12, 2013, as well as the time of the filing of the subsequent indictment on January 9, 2014 (on which she was not re-arrested or arraigned), she cannot be prosecuted thus necessitating a dismissal of the indictment and proceeding,” the motion said.
U.S. prosecutors accused Khobragade of lying in a visa application about how much she paid her housekeeper. She was indicted last week by a federal grand jury on one count of visa fraud and one count of making false statements.
The Indian government denied a request by the State Department to waive Khobragade’s diplomatic immunity so she can answer the charges, U.S. and Indian officials said. The immunity was granted after her controversial arrest.
Khobragade arrived at the New Delhi airport Friday, according to an Indian official who was not authorized to speak to the media.
Khobragade told CNN, through an intermediary, that the charges against her “are false and baseless.”
“I look forward to demonstrating that to all of you,” she said through the intermediary.
Khobragade “affirmed her determination to ensure that the episode would not leave a lasting impact on her family, in particular, her children, who are still in the United States,” the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said.
New Delhi is demanding that Washington apologize and have the charges dropped.
Amid the tensions over the case, the United States announced that it will withdraw one official from its embassy in New Delhi.
Federal prosecutors allege Khobragade promised in the visa application, under which her housekeeper moved from India to the United States, to pay her at least the minimum wage in New York, and to require she work no more than 40 hours per week.
They allege that Khobragade then had the housekeeper, Sangeeta Richard, sign a second contract, which set her pay far below the minimum wage and required that she work much longer hours.
“I would like to tell other domestic workers who are suffering as I did — you have rights and do not let anyone exploit you,” Richard said in a statement released Thursday.
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