New Delhi: Indian Foreign Service officer Devyani Khobragade, who hit the headlines in 2013 following charges of fraudulently underpaying her domestic help and was subsequently repatriated to India by the United States, has recently released a children’s book titled The Adventures of Young Ambedkar.
Born into a Dalit family in Maharashtra, Devyani says that the book’s purpose is to educate her daughters (Amaya and Shaira) about the struggles of the Scheduled Caste community.
The book focuses on Dalit icon B.R. Ambedkar’s journey as a young child and how he comes to realise what it means to be identified as a member of the community.
Devyani narrates an incident in the book when ‘Bhim’ (Ambedkar) is disallowed by a class attendant from sitting with his friends who belong to upper caste communities. A young Bhim is also asked to bring his own “gunny mat” which he has to take home each day because the attendant doesn’t want to “get polluted” by it while cleaning the classroom.
“Young Bhim was confused. He wasn’t allowed to sit with his classmates, whose mats were spread across the room. He did not understand why he was being separated from the others in class. He felt sad and scared. School wasn’t as much fun as he had imagined it would be,” narrates the author.
Also read: Even in an empty Delhi metro coach, middle-class Indians make their maids sit on the floor
Visa fraud and arrest
In December 2013, Devyani, then a senior diplomat at the Indian consulate in New York, was charged of lying about payment of minimum wages to her Indian domestic help in the latter’s visa form.
Devyani was subsequently arrested and strip-searched, which caused a huge outrage in India. The then UPA government demanded an apology from the US authorities for the humiliation Devyani had to undergo.
In a email published at the time, she had said: “I broke down many times as the indignities of repeated handcuffing, stripping and cavity searches, swabbing, in a holdup with common criminals and drug addicts were all being imposed upon me despite my incessant assertions of immunity.”
Deteriorating India-US relations
Devyani’s arrest and subsequent departure to India in January 2014 had set off one of the worst India-US relations at the time. While India had responded to her arrest by removing extra-security barriers from outside the US embassy in New Delhi, America blocked the parking lots outside the Indian embassy in Washington DC.
As Devyani arrived from the US, she was greeted by members of the Republican Party of India with their party flags, balloons and bouquets. They also chanted slogans such as “long live Devyani Khobragade, long Live India” and “down with America, down with Barack Obama”.
Former US attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, later wrote in his autobiography that the arrest and strip search of the Indian diplomat could have been avoided.
Violation of passport rules
Devyani’s father Uttam Khobragade was also an IAS officer of the 1984 batch. He was involved in the Adarsh Housing Society scam and charged under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Indian Penal Code in 2017.
It was also reported at the time that the CBI was likely to file a case against both Devyani and her father for allegedly acquiring a flat on the basis of a false affidavit.
No stranger to controversy, Devyani was later also involved in another case in March 2014. This time it was about her daughters and their passports.
Her two daughters had held both Indian and American passports.
Devyani was found guilty of “serious misconduct” as she had applied for foreign passports for her daughters without taking clearance from the Indian government. The Ministry of External Affairs had also revoked her children’s passports.
In response to this, the diplomat had filed a petition in the Delhi High Court arguing that it was permissible for her children, who were both under 18 years of age, to retain both Indian and US passports.
Also read: India issues demarche to US over arrest of Indian students, seeks consular access
She was a person who advocated for women’s right during her stay in US.
All of a sudden she landed in soup for not paying the minimum wage to her domestic worker. Further enquiries revealed that she committed fradulent practices, including forging multiple job contracts to bring her domestic aid to US.
Shows the cheap mentality of Indian middle class and she is no different.
She preached something and done the exact opposite.When exploitation is done by a dalit, woman its not counted in its usual gravity.
Anyway, she forgot that she is in US, a country with strict labour rules and firm low enforcement agencies and jurisdiction, unlike India where a corrupt politician or bureaucrat can influence everything including the military.
She was a person who advocated for women’s right during her stay in US.
All of a sudden she landed in soup for not paying the minimum wage to her domestic worker. Further enquiries revealed that she committed fradulent practices, including forging multiple job contracts to bring her domestic aid to US.
Shows the cheap mentality of Indian middle class and she is no different.
She preached something and done the exact opposite.When exploitation is done by a dalit, woman its not counted in its usual gravity.
Anyway, she forgot that she is in US, a country with strict labour rules and firm low enforcement agencies and jurisdiction, unlike India where a corrupt politician or bureaucrat can influence everything including the military.
Maybe she means she is a D. Lit. (Doctorate in Literature) and not Dalit?
What happened in 2013, was absolutely wrong. For a country that professes to be true champion of
world democracy, it never acts like a democratic country. Indian Government should have retaliated and should have demanded apology in no uncertain terms. They failed miserably and shown they were spineless.
Don’t drag Bhim R Ambadkarji in this contest. He never got any benefit in the name of Dalit.
1. Reservations must be given only for upgrade and education only once. If parents already enjoyed reservations one generation and earned wealth not ALLOW second generation and after that.
First gfall b.r Ambedkar does not leader of dalit , he is leader of all Indian but some communites people’s buy divided b.r .Ambedkar. Dr babasaheb Ambedkar is great person he is diamond of India and to he lot of face problem he was life and ms,divyanj khobragade is bold and strong currage womman I agree with her and I wish her will shine
As deserve it,
Good one ?
As for my knowledge she is very much bold women who is having courage to face all controversy against her. After all she is Indian women knows , how to face difficulties. I wish her book will be shine as she is deserve it.
For Your kind information BR Aambedkar is Not a Dalit Icon. Kindly read one of his book u will come to know about him. He is great leader.
In stead of writing about the book that she has written, the writer takes pleasure in writing about her personal issues that she faced in the past.
The author has deviated herself from the main toipc for the reasons best known to her!
Was this article was about her upcoming book or about her past controversies
mr writer,
You are writing about her past or present ?.what she is doing or have done in recent.
Infact Your news , yes news is completely about her personal and family what they did in past by repeating this you are trying to defame of Baba Saheb and their community in your professional way.