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New Delhi: Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday sought clarification from the Center on Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaki’s press conference in Delhi, which women journalists were not allowed to attend.
She questioned that if such insults towards women journalists are allowed in India then how is the central government committed to women empowerment.
Muttaqi, a senior leader of the Taliban government, is known for overseeing policies that severely restrict women’s rights in Afghanistan, including restrictions on employment and education.
India has maintained a cautious approach towards engaging with the Taliban due to its human rights record and concerns about Afghanistan becoming a haven for terrorist groups.
In a post on Twitter, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi, please clarify your position on the removal of women journalists from the press conference of Taliban representative during his visit to India.”
He said, “If your beliefs about women’s rights are not a convenient stance from one election to the next, then how have you allowed the disrespect of some of the most capable women of India, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride, in our country.”
Earlier in the day, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra also attacked the Center for providing diplomatic courtesy to the Taliban delegation.
He said, “The Indian External Affairs Ministry has rolled out the red carpet for this man, this Taliban foreign minister, who has the audacity to ask to remove women from the room where he is holding a press conference, and we are giving official status to this delegation and providing them protocols.”
Calling the incident a national shame, Moitra said, “It is extremely insulting to the women of India that our government has been a willing participant and has used taxpayers’ money to finance this practice. Women journalists have been asked to leave the room. What is happening?”
Criticizing the government, she said, “You are talking about ‘Beti Bachao’, about women in India, about ‘masses’ and ‘sisters’ and all this. You are, at the taxpayers’ expense, providing official protocol and red carpet for a government delegation, which is actually on Indian soil, disrespecting our values and asking women to leave the room.”
–IANS