NEW DELHI: The Congress party on Saturday criticised the Narendra Modi government after women journalists were barred from attending a press conference held by visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi.
همدا مهال: د ا.ا.ا. بهرنیو چارو وزیر محترم مولوي امیرخان متقي د هند هیواد پلازمینه نوي ډهلي کي د افغان سفارت په مقر کې، هند ته د خپل سفر په اړه له رسنیو سره د پریس کانفرانس له لارې جزئیات شریکوي. pic.twitter.com/BORpNGdFzK
— Hafiz Zia Ahmad (@HafizZiaAhmad) October 10, 2025
Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Rahul Gandhi accused the government of failing to uphold women’s rights. “Your silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the emptiness of your slogans on Nari Shakti,” Rahul Gandhi said on X.
How dare female journalists be barred from a press conference by Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Delhi simply because of their gender? Was it just Taliban misogyny or a tacit endorsement of it on Indian soil?
The Republic of India is built on equality. We are…
— D. Raja (@ComradeDRaja) October 11, 2025
Priyanka Gandhi questioned whether Modi’s support for women’s empowerment was “just convenient posturing from one election to another.”
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Reports said the press event at the Afghan embassy was limited to male journalists. Sources indicated the Taliban delegation decided on the exclusion, though Indian officials had suggested including women reporters.
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)
— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) October 11, 2025
Congress communications chief Jairam Ramesh called it “shocking and unacceptable,” while CPI leader D. Raja demanded an explanation from the Ministry of External Affairs, saying the incident violated India’s constitutional values of equality.
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Former finance minister P. Chidambaram said male reporters should have refused to participate in solidarity with their excluded colleagues.
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… https://t.co/FyaxxCteK6
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 11, 2025
The controversy came a day after Muttaqi met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, who reaffirmed India’s commitment to Afghanistan’s stability and announced the upgrading of India’s technical mission in Kabul to a full embassy.