A 29-year-old Indian man from Kolkata has been 'outed' by a British newspaper as the male consort of a homosexual British diplomat currently serving as his country's high commissioner to Papua New Guinea.

Pablo Ganguly has been named as the 'lover' and 'lifelong companion' of High Commissioner Simon Scaddan who was sent to Port Moresby in 2000 after serving as British deputy high commissioner in Kolkata.

The Mail on Sunday quotes Scaddam as saying, 'The days when gays could be blackmailed are over. Most reasonable people have got used to the idea. Some have not. But they will need to. There was a time when one really had to suppress one's feelings completely. The fact is that we are not all make-up and high heels. We don't sashay around. We are professional people doing as good a job as our hetrosexual colleagues in the diplomatic corps.'

Divorced last year from his wife of 32 years, Scaddan also served in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi before he was assigned to Kolkata where he met Pablo, then a student in the city.

'He was, I would say, a very creative student. I met his parents and they approve of the relationship. he joined me here (Port Moresby) a year later and he has been an absolute bonus to my work, bringing his own amazing talents,' Scaddan declares in his interview.

Ganguly is expected to live with Scaddan in Edinburgh when the high commissioner retires in a year's time.

Scaddan's divorced wife Frances is quoted as saying, 'Simon met Pablo a few years after we separated. He told me he had fallen in love with him at first sight, just like he'd done with me. I have met Pablo on a number of occasions. They came to stay with me two weeks ago. I know Pablo is a lot younger, but I don't care. Now I'm divorced from Simon I don't mind what he does.'

A spokesman for the British Foreign Office in London said, 'Today's Foreign Office  is open to people from all sorts of backgrounds and increasingly reflects the UK's highly diverse society. At last week's Gay Pride Festival in London the Foreign Office had a stand giving out career advice. We need to make sure our diplomats are true representatives of Britain.'