Alwaght-India's foreign ministry summoned Saudi Arabia's ambassador following reports that one of the Middle East country's officials repeatedly raped two Nepali maids.
The Saudi regime is pressing India to drop the case, while Nepal wants justice for its two citizens who say they were kidnapped, gang-raped and starved over several months at the diplomat's home close to New Delhi.
Indian foreign ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said on Twitter that the foreign ministry on Thursday "conveyed (a) request" from the police to Saud Mohammed Al Sati for the Saudi embassy's cooperation "in the case of 2 Nepali citizens.”
A senior Indian police officer was quoted as saying a case of "rape, sodomy and illegal confinement" has been filed against the diplomat.
On September 7, Indian police raided the Saudi diplomat’s apartment at Caitriona Towers in the suburb of the city of Gurgaon, south of New Delhi, after a tip-off from a local NGO, Maiti Nepal India.
The two Nepali maids, who were rescued in the police raid, said they were repeatedly raped, starved and held hostage for several months after leaving Nepal to work for the Saudi official.
"They raped us, kept us locked up, did not give us anything to eat... When we tried to run away, we were beaten up," one of the rescued women said.
Indian Police said in a statement on Thursday they had sent the details of their investigation to the foreign ministry and had sought its advice on how to proceed."We are awaiting further instructions from the MEA, who now have to guide and assist us to carry out this investigation," Commissioner of Police Navdeep Singh Virk said. Earlier, Indians staged a protest outside the Saudi embassy in the capital, New Delhi, on Thursday. Demonstrators were holding placards reading “Protect dignity of women,” “No immunity for rapists” and “Fig leaf of diplomatic immunity no excuse to commit crimes.”
The rape case has sparked sparking a diplomatic row ahead of a planned state visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Saudi Arabia later this year. The visit is part of a strategy of winning investment from cash-rich oil states and to expand cooperation in the energy sector. At the same time, Modi has made improving relations with neighboring Nepal one of his top priorities, as concerns grow over China's influence in the Himalayan nation.
Analysts say India is faced with a tough balancing act as it needs to support the ongoing probe to satisfy Nepal and the Indian public, while not alienating the Saudi regime.
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In Focus
Ansarullah
A Zaidi Shiite movement operating in Yemen. It seeks to establish a democratic government in Yemen.
Shiite
represents the second largest denomination of Islam. Shiites believe Ali (peace be upon him) to be prophet"s successor in the Caliphate.
Resistance
Axis of Resistances refers to countries and movements with common political goal, i.e., resisting against Zionist regime, America and other western powers. Iran, Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Hamas in Palestine are considered as the Axis of Resistance.
Persian Gulf Cooperation Council
A regional political u n i o n consisting of Arab states of the Persian Gulf, except for Iraq.
Taliban
Taliban is a Sunni fundamentalist movement in Afghanistan. It was founded by Mohammed Omar in 1994.
Wahhabism & Extremism
Wahhabism is an extremist pseudo-Sunni movement, which labels non-Wahhabi Muslims as apostates thus paving the way for their bloodshed.
Kurds
Kurds are an ethnic group in the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region, which spans adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. They are an Iranian people and speak the Kurdish languages, which form a subgroup of the Northwestern Iranian branch of Iranian languages.
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949.
Islamic Awakening
Refers to a revival of the Islam throughout the world, that began in 1979 by Iranian Revolution that established an Islamic republic.
Al-Qaeda
A militant Sunni organization founded by Osama bin Laden at some point between 1988 and 1989
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