Women's Affairs Diplomat Allegedly Paid Nanny a Whopping $3.31 an Hour

Devyani Khobragade, the deputy consul general for political, economic, commercial and women’s affairs at the Indian Consulate General in New York City, is facing charges after being accused of paying her full-time babysitter just $3.31 an hour and lying on a visa application.

Federal prosecutors claim the full-time babysitter from India worked for Khobragade in New York City for about 7 months at more than 40 hours a week. On these charges, she was arrested last Thursday outside of her children’s school. US State Department says she cannot claim immunity under the Vienna Convention. “Foreign nationals brought to the United States to serve as domestic workers are entitled to the same protections against exploitation as those afforded to United States citizens,” U.S. Attorney for Manhattan Preet Bharara told the New York Daily News.

However, Indian officials are objecting to the allegations saying they’re a “smokescreen created to obfuscate the issue.”

Khobragade was released on $250,000 bail after surrendering her passport so she can’t flee the country. The U.S. Attorney’s office said the counts against Khobragade carry a maximum combined 15 years in prison. She’s due back in court in January.