Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade was allowed to fly home to India on Friday.
Khobragade was released after being indicted by a U.S Federal Jury for a charge of exploiting her Indian housekeeper and nanny by making her work 100 hours a week for very low pay and subsequently lying about it on her American visa form.
Khobragade has also been granted diplomatic immunity, which was one of her main demands. Her father declared her release as a 'National Triumph' for India.
Much of the controversy over this case stems from the cultural resonations of her detainment. Khobragade was detained on December 13th and strip-searched by U.S Marshall's; a common element of detainment in the USA.
In India, this process was seen as humiliating and a violent disregard for Khobragade's human rights, not only as a middle-class Indian woman, but as a diplomat. In relation to this, India retaliated against the USA, such as banning cinemas from screening American movies and requesting they withdraw a diplomat from the American embassy in New Delhi.
The release of Khobragade from custody may not solve relations between India and the USA entirely, but has certainly stopped the situation from escalating further.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
