"As I've said before, as a family member of a consular officer at the Indian consulate in New York, she did not enjoy immunity from arrest from criminal or civil jurisdiction under international law," US State Department spokesperson Mark Toner told mediapersons on Tuesday at his daily news conference.
"Certainly though, we value our partnership with India and we attach great importance to the presence of all Indian diplomatic and consular representatives in the US," he said.
"We sympathise with Biswas and her family," he said when asked if the United States would express its regret on the treatment of the daughter of the Indian diplomat.
Toner said Biswas was allowed to contact her parents during the night she was detained. "She was allowed to contact her parents very soon after being taken into custody and she was released the next day," he said.
