Taliban foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Sunday addressed a press conference in Delhi where both women & men journalists were present. This came after a massive discontent from the opposition and media bodies over the "exclusion" of female journalists from Muttaqi's presser at the Afghanistan embassy in New Delhi on Friday.
Reacting to the Friday presser, Muttaqi said that there was no intention to make any "deliberate exclusion" of women.
“Regarding the press conference, it was due to the short notice. The participation list was prepared with specific journalists, and it was neither a technical issue nor any deliberate exclusion. It was not intended," he said.
Also read: Women journalists barred: Taliban presser in New Delhi restricts entry of females; MEA reacts
The Editors Guild of India and the Indian Women Press Corps (IWPC) had strongly condemned the Friday presser calling out the "blatant gender discrimination on Indian soil."
"Whether or not the MEA coordinated the event, it is deeply troubling that such a discriminatory exclusion was allowed to proceed without objection," the had Guild said.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had also questioned the prime minister's recognition of women's rights saying, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India."
"In our country, women have the right to equal participation in every space. Your silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the emptiness of your slogans on Nari Shakti," leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said.
However, the ministry of external affairs clarified that India had no role in the presser.
Earlier in the day, Muttaqi's scheduled visit to Agra was cancelled.
Also read: India elevates ties with Taliban, both slam terrorism from ‘regional countries’
Muttaqi, who landed in New Delhi on Thursday on a six-day trip, is the first senior Taliban minister to visit India after the group seized power four years ago. India has not yet recognised the Taliban set up.
The Afghan foreign minister on Saturday visited Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, one of the most influential Islamic seminaries in South Asia.
The Afghan foreign minister's visit to India comes at a time when both India and Afghanistan are having frosty relations with Pakistan over a range of issues, including cross-border terrorism.
Reacting to the Friday presser, Muttaqi said that there was no intention to make any "deliberate exclusion" of women.
“Regarding the press conference, it was due to the short notice. The participation list was prepared with specific journalists, and it was neither a technical issue nor any deliberate exclusion. It was not intended," he said.
Also read: Women journalists barred: Taliban presser in New Delhi restricts entry of females; MEA reacts
The Editors Guild of India and the Indian Women Press Corps (IWPC) had strongly condemned the Friday presser calling out the "blatant gender discrimination on Indian soil."
"Whether or not the MEA coordinated the event, it is deeply troubling that such a discriminatory exclusion was allowed to proceed without objection," the had Guild said.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had also questioned the prime minister's recognition of women's rights saying, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India."
"In our country, women have the right to equal participation in every space. Your silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the emptiness of your slogans on Nari Shakti," leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said.
However, the ministry of external affairs clarified that India had no role in the presser.
Earlier in the day, Muttaqi's scheduled visit to Agra was cancelled.
Also read: India elevates ties with Taliban, both slam terrorism from ‘regional countries’
Muttaqi, who landed in New Delhi on Thursday on a six-day trip, is the first senior Taliban minister to visit India after the group seized power four years ago. India has not yet recognised the Taliban set up.
The Afghan foreign minister on Saturday visited Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, one of the most influential Islamic seminaries in South Asia.
The Afghan foreign minister's visit to India comes at a time when both India and Afghanistan are having frosty relations with Pakistan over a range of issues, including cross-border terrorism.
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