Guyana’s High Commissioner to India Charrandas Persaud has finally wrapped up his duties in the Asian State. On Christmas Day, he bid farewell to the country and apologized for a video which showed him hurling derogatory remarks at a woman
over a stray-dog in his yard.
Those remarks prompted President Irfaan Ali about three months ago to recall Persaud from India. At an apparent farewell for Persaud, the former High Commissioner told the gathering that the incident stemmed from months of uncanny behavior from a stray-dog who kept him up at night.
“There’s a lady named Sonia Gosh, she has a licence to feed and take care of stray dogs in this area. There were about 60 of them and one night there was one that woke me up, tumbled my bin and so what I did, and I don’t have anything against dogs, but I have a hell of a thing against dogs making a mess of my yard. So I instructed the driver and my two Mali’s to take the dog far away,” Persaud said.
He noted that on one of her rounds, the woman realized that the dog was missing. Persaud explained that the woman entered his yard and enquired about the dogs whereabouts. An argument soon ensued after. He noted that the video did not catch the entire ordeal and felt that there was some amount of bias for the Indian woman.
While recounting the fiasco, Persaud said, “I did what I did out of anger. She came and banged on my door even though security had told her that the dog was taken away… I was so surprised about the expletives she handed to me. But what I did as High Commissioner was wrong and I owe my colleagues an apology for not behaving in a manner befitting of a diplomat I was angry and I did not exercise diplomacy.”
Persaud however told the gathering that when the video surfaced in October, he was contacted by President Ali who expressed his disappointment. On the contrary though, Persaud explained that it was he who opted to leave India and not as directed by the Head of State.
“He (President Ali) said ‘Are you sure you want to return to Guyana?’ and I said ‘yes’ because people of all walks of life would literally take the hair off of your head… as a diplomat I apologize for my behavior but as Charandass Persaud, an individual, I would strongly stand up to any woman,” Persaud said.
Guyana Standard previously reported that Charrandas was recalled in October 2022, from his post in India, after a disturbing video of him hurling lewd remarks to a woman, caught the attention of President Ali.
Opposition spokesperson on Foreign Relations, Amanza Walton-Desir in a press statement had said Persaud’s conduct was “outrageous and disgusting” and went against several principles connected to Guyana’s treaty obligations as it relates to the treatment of women, “diplomatic etiquette and of plain general decency”.
