New Delhi: Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s high-profile visit to New Delhi on October 10 — meant to reset India’s diplomatic engagement with the Taliban — has instead ignited a storm over gender rights and India’s moral positioning on Afghanistan.
The controversy erupted after women journalists were denied entry to a press briefing held at the Afghan Embassy, reportedly at the request of the Taliban delegation. The move, seen as a blatant reflection of the regime’s misogynistic policies back home, triggered sharp condemnation from political leaders, press associations, and rights groups across India.
“Barring women journalists from covering a diplomatic event in the heart of India is not just shameful — it’s a betrayal of the values we claim to stand for,” said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a post on X. Several media bodies also slammed the exclusion, calling it “an affront to press freedom and gender equality.”
The Ministry of External Affairs quickly distanced itself, stating that the embassy event was “a private function” organized by the Afghan side and that the Government of India “had no role in determining media access.” But the explanation has done little to quell criticism that India, by hosting Muttaqi at all, is lending legitimacy to a regime that continues to erase women from public life.
Muttaqi’s visit, his first to India since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, focused on humanitarian aid, trade routes, and regional security cooperation. India handed over several ambulances as part of ongoing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. Yet the diplomatic optics — a Taliban envoy welcomed in Delhi while women reporters stood barred outside — has cast a shadow over what was meant to be a cautious outreach.
For many observers, the episode underscores a deeper dilemma in India’s Afghanistan policy: the tension between realpolitik and principle. While New Delhi seeks stability and influence in Kabul amid China and Pakistan’s growing presence, engaging a regime that denies basic rights to half its population risks moral compromise and domestic backlash.
“This incident is more than a protocol lapse — it’s a moral mirror,” said a senior journalist in Delhi. “India can’t claim to champion women’s empowerment abroad while tolerating their exclusion on its own soil.”
As the dust settles, Muttaqi’s visit — intended to project a new phase of pragmatic diplomacy — may instead be remembered as a moment when India’s silence on gender equality spoke louder than its strategic intent.
