'No role in Muttaqi's presser', says MEA amid reports of female journalists barred from Taliban FM’s press meet

The Ministry of External Affairs on Saturday said it had “no involvement” in Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s press conference held in New Delhi on Friday, which reportedly did not allow female journalists to participate in the presser.

The MEA said that invitations to Muttaqi’s press meet were sent to select journalists by Afghanistan’s Consul General in Mumbai, who was in Delhi for the Afghan minister’s visit. The MEA noted that the Afghan Embassy premises are not under the jurisdiction of the Indian government.

Muttaqi came to India earlier this week for his first official trip since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021. After holding a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Muttaqi held a press conference in New Delhi.

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Female journalists from several media groups took to social media to note that women reporters were absent from the presser and raised questions about the incident. Some female journalists also complained of being stopped from entering the venue of the press event.

The Afghanistan government under the Taliban has been imposing stringent restrictions on women ever since it came back to power. From barring them from universities to not allowing them to work, women under Taliban rule have been stripped of their rights.

Meanwhile, Jaishankar announced the upgradation of the technical mission of India in Afghanistan to a full mission, the Embassy of India in Kabul, during his meeting with Muttaqi.

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Jaishankar said, “India is fully committed to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Afghanistan.” He added that India and Afghanistan have “a common commitment towards growth”, which is threatened by cross-border terrorism.

Muttaqi said, “Afghanistan looks at India as a close friend. We will not allow anyone to use the territory of Afghanistan to threaten or against others.”

Muttaqi’s trip – made possible after the UN Security Council granted him a travel waiver – is expected to be closely watched by India’s arch-rival Pakistan, as New Delhi deepens its engagement with the Taliban government.