On October 10, 2025, a press conference in New Delhi by Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi ignited a political firestorm across India, after women journalists were excluded from the event. The controversy has since grown, drawing sharp rebukes from opposition leaders, public figures, and media professionals, while also prompting the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to clarify its role—or lack thereof—in the episode.
The press conference, held at the Afghanistan Embassy in New Delhi, was part of Muttaqi’s week-long official visit to India, which began on October 9 and is scheduled to continue until October 16. This visit marks the first high-level delegation from Kabul to India since the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in August 2021, a development that has complicated diplomatic relations and raised difficult questions about engagement with the new regime.
According to The Economic Times and Moneycontrol, the press event became the center of controversy when it emerged that women journalists were barred from attending. Only selected male journalists and Afghan embassy officials were allowed inside. The exclusion was widely condemned as an affront to both gender equality and the professional dignity of India’s women journalists.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram expressed his shock and disappointment in a post on X (formerly Twitter), stating, “I am shocked that women journalists were excluded from the press conference addressed by Mr Amir Khan Muttaqi of Afghanistan. In my personal view, the men journalists should have walked out when they found that their women colleagues were excluded (or not invited).” Chidambaram’s remarks echoed a growing sentiment among many in India’s political and media circles that solidarity was called for in the face of such overt discrimination.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram was even more pointed in his criticism, taking aim at the Indian government and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for, in his view, acquiescing to the Taliban’s discriminatory norms. “I understand the geopolitical compulsions that force us to engage with the Taliban, but to accede to their discriminatory and plain primitive mores is outright ridiculous, it’s very disappointing to note the conduct of the Ministry of External Affairs and S Jaishankar in excluding women journalists from the press briefing of the Taliban Minister,” he said, as reported by The New Indian Express.
The outrage was not limited to Congress ranks. TMC MP Mahua Moitra posted on X, “Govt has dishonoured every single Indian woman by allowing Taliban minister to exclude women journalists from presser. Shameful bunch of spineless hypocrites.”
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Congress general secretary, demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi clarify his position on the incident. She called the exclusion “an insult to some of India’s most competent women.” In her words, “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. If your recognition of women’s rights isn’t just convenient posturing from one election to the other, then how has this insult to some of India’s most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride.”
Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, also weighed in, accusing Prime Minister Modi of failing to stand up for Indian women. “Mr. Modi, when you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling every woman in India that you are too weak to stand up for them. 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,” he posted on X.
Congress spokesperson Shama Mohamed added to the chorus of criticism, asking, “Is it true that women journalists were not invited to the press conference of Afghanistan’s Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, as dictated by him? Who are they to dictate terms to our nation, that too on our own soil, and impose their discriminatory agenda against women?”
Amid the uproar, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement on October 11, seeking to distance itself from the controversy. “MEA had no involvement in the press interaction held yesterday by the Afghan FM in Delhi,” the ministry said, as reported by The New Indian Express and PTI. It was clarified that the decision on which journalists to invite was made solely by Taliban officials accompanying the Foreign Minister. People familiar with the matter told The Hindu that the Indian side had suggested women journalists be included among the invitees, but the final call rested with the Afghan delegation.
The Afghan press conference came on the heels of bilateral talks between Muttaqi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, which reportedly focused on strengthening India-Afghanistan relations, humanitarian assistance, trade routes, and security cooperation. India also announced new healthcare projects for Afghanistan, including the establishment of a Thalassemia centre, a modern diagnostic centre in Kabul, and the replacement of the heating system at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health.
During the press conference, Muttaqi sidestepped direct questions about women’s rights in Afghanistan, instead emphasizing national sovereignty. “Every country has its own customs, laws and principles, and there should be respect for them,” he said, as reported by The Hindu. He also claimed that the overall situation in Afghanistan had improved since the Taliban’s takeover, asserting, “In these four years, there have been no such losses. Laws are in force and everyone has their rights. Those who are engaging in propaganda are making a mistake.”
The Taliban regime has faced sustained criticism from the international community, including the United Nations, for its severe restrictions on women’s rights and freedoms. The exclusion of women journalists in New Delhi was seen by many as an extension of those policies onto Indian soil, raising uncomfortable questions about the boundaries of diplomatic engagement and the responsibilities of host nations.
No joint press briefing was held after the official meeting between the two foreign ministers; instead, the Afghan side alone conducted a separate media interaction at its embassy premises. The absence of women journalists at such a high-profile event in India—a country that prides itself on its democratic values and robust press corps—was widely perceived as a setback for gender equality and press freedom.
As the debate continues, the episode has thrown a spotlight on the complexities of engaging with regimes whose values diverge so sharply from those of democratic societies, and on the need for vigilance in upholding the rights and dignity of all citizens, regardless of the pressures of realpolitik.
The incident has left a mark, not just on India-Afghanistan relations, but on the broader conversation about gender, diplomacy, and the principles that underpin a free and open society.