Cash Crunch: Indian Diplomats Could Face Reciprocal Action, Warn Foreign Missions

New Delhi: After the Russian envoy shot off an angry letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs demanding that the fifty thousand per week withdrawal limit for embassies be scrapped, the dean of the diplomatic corps has confirmed that some missions are thinking of recommending similar restrictions on Indian diplomats serving in their countries.

Ever since demonetisation was announced on 8th November, several embassies have written to the MEA complaining about how their day to day functioning has been affected

Hans Dannenberg Castellanos, Ambassador of the Dominican Republic and also the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps expressed his disappointment in an interview with CNN-News18.

He said, “We understand this is not the responsibility of the MEA, but we were hoping some response would come from the Finance Ministry.

However, even after writing two letters on behalf of all missions, we still have received no response".

Castellanos says the fact that their letters have gone unanswered has made some ambassadors upset.

He added, “Some missions are thinking of recommending reciprocal action to their capitals and summoning of Indian envoys if the matter is not resolved".

Castellanos explained that 50,000 rupees is just not enough for big missions like Russia, US or China who have a large number of diplomats and Indian staff.

He says, “Imagine if the Russian ambassador takes a delegation of ten people to a five star hotel. The bill will easily be above fifty thousand".

He also said, “Embassies like Russia and Finland are undergoing renovation work, so how will they pay the construction staff".

The Russian Embassy confirmed that their Ambassador had written a letter to the MEA but did not wish to comment further saying they are still waiting for a response.

According to reports, the Russian government is thinking of summoning the Indian envoy to lodge a formal protest if the matter is not resolved soon.

The MEA has refused to give a formal response to the Russian Ambassadors letter.

Sources say, “This is not a matter limited to the Russian Embassy alone.

An inter-ministerial task force has been setup and the matter rests with the department of economic affairs in the Finance Ministry".