WASHINGTON: The United States and India expelled a diplomat each from the other country, in what was euphemistically and politely termed as ''withdrawal,'' as the month-long fiasco over the so-called Khobragade affair drew to a close on Friday.New Delhi agreed on Thursday to a US request to withdraw the controversial Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade from New York, after the Washington granted her full diplomatic immunity ahead of a criminal indictment by US attorney Preet Bharara in a visa fraud case. The diplomat left New York late on Thursday under what is primarily a political deal.In retaliation, New Delhi, which believed Khobragade was wrongly indicted, asked on Friday for a US diplomat of equal rank to Khobragade to be withdrawn from the US embassy in New Delhi The tit for tat expulsions (which is what it is despite the polite euphemisms) is only the second instance of a US diplomat being expelled, the first instance being expulsion of George Griffin, then political counsellor, 33 years ago. That was in retaliation against similar action being taken by the US against Prabhakar Menon, an Indian diplomat.Under relentless pressure from India, the US state department on Thursday accorded Khobragade full diplomatic immunity after keeping New Delhi on tenterhooks for more than two weeks. But the Obama administration did not stop US attorney Preet Bharara, whose office was prosecuting the case, from indicting her on two criminal charges of visa fraud and misrepresentation in a case involving her employment of Sangeeta Richard, an India-imported domestic assistant who she employed as her nanny/housekeeper in New York.Reflecting the political deal, Bharara told the court that there was no need for an arraignment because Khobragade had ''very recently'' been given diplomatic immunity status. However, he said the charges against her will remain pending until she can be brought to court to face them, either through a waiver of immunity or her return to the US without immunity status.''We will alert the court promptly if we learn that the defendant returns to the United States in a non-immune capacity, at which time the government will proceed to prosecute this case and prove the charges in the indictment,'' he said in a letter to the court.For the record, the state department formally asked New Delhi to waive immunity for Khobragade even as Bharara filed the indictment. New Delhi refused, and therefore Washington requested her departure from the United States. Once she returns, India's ministry of external affairs is expected to post her to the head office, perhaps in a position that will allow continued UN-credentialed immunity.Typical of the muddled choreography and posturing on all sides, Bharara initially told the court that Khobragade had already left the US on Thursday afternoon on the basis of what the state department had told him. But after Khobragade’s attorney Daniel Arshack contested it and said she was still at home with her husband and children, the prosecution clarified that she had not departed the United States.Arshack later confirmed that Khobragade would be leaving the US ''with her head held high.''''We are pleased that the United States department of state did the right thing today by recognizing the diplomatic status to which Dr. Khobragade has always been entitled,'' Arshack told Fox News in New York. ''As a result of her diplomatic status having been recognized, the Federal court recognized Dr. Khobragade’s right to travel and she is pleased to be returning to her country.''But clearly, the issue is far from completely resolved because Khobragade is married to a New York–born Indian-American who is a US citizen. The couple has two school-going children and the eventual settlement has to take into account ways to keep the family together — a personal family crisis that the current patchwork resolution did not detail.In a statement related to her withdrawal, the ministry of external affairs said “At the time of her departure for India, Counsellor Khobragade reiterated her innocence on charges filed against her” and “affirmed her determination to ensure that the episode would not leave a lasting impact on her family, in particular, her children, who are still in the United States.”Further resolution could involve periodic postings for Khobragade to the United Nations to enable her to be with her family, if her husband, Aakash Singh Rathore, desires or needs to be in New York City or region. It would still require state department assent, which may be easier with the passage of time and the moderation of positions.It could also involve postings in Toronto and other neighbouring cities that are less than couple hours flight from NYC, although going by his own career path as a professor of philosophy and an oenophile closely involved with the Indian wine industry, her husband appears equally at ease in India. For now though, the Big Apple and USA is off bounds for Devyani Khobragade.(With inputs from agencies)