India’s opposition parties united in strong condemnation of the Narendra Modi government following the controversial exclusion of women journalists from a press conference featuring Afghanistan’s visiting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Congress general secretary, directly challenged the Prime Minister, demanding a clear statement on his government’s position regarding the incident.
Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, took to social media to express his outrage. He stated, “Mr. Modi, by permitting the exclusion of women journalists from a public event, you are implicitly telling every woman in India that you lack the courage to defend their rights. In our nation, women are entitled to equal participation in all spheres. Your silence on this blatant discrimination utterly exposes the hollowness of your ‘Nari Shakti’ slogans.”
Gandhi’s forceful remarks echoed an earlier message by Ms. Vadra, who had directly questioned whether the Prime Minister’s commitment to women’s rights was merely “convenient political rhetoric, employed only during election cycles.” She further challenged how such a profound “insult to some of India’s most accomplished women” could have been allowed to unfold.
In her initial message, Ms. Vadra had urged the Prime Minister to publicly clarify his stance on the exclusion of female journalists from the press conference with the Taliban representative during his visit to India.
The controversial press conference, held by the Afghan Foreign Minister on Friday, was exclusively accessible to a select group of male journalists, with women reporters notably and conspicuously absent from the proceedings.
The interaction took place at the Afghan Embassy in New Delhi, shortly after Minister Muttaqi concluded extensive discussions with India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar.
Although the Government of India has yet to issue an official statement, it is understood that the decision regarding media invitations was made by Taliban officials who accompanied the visiting minister. Sources indicate that the Indian side had, in fact, suggested to the Afghan delegation that women journalists should be among those invited.
Jairam Ramesh, the Congress party’s communication chief, voiced his dismay, calling it a ‘ban on female journalists in India.’ He added, ‘It is shocking and utterly unacceptable that the Government of India consented to this, especially in New Delhi and on the eve of the International Day of the Girl Child.’
Adding to the chorus of criticism, former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram offered his personal opinion, stating, “The male journalists present should have walked out in protest upon realizing that their female colleagues were excluded or not invited.”
D. Raja, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India, directly questioned the External Affairs Minister, asking, “Was this merely Taliban misogyny, or a tacit endorsement of it on Indian soil? The Republic of India is founded on principles of equality. We are a nation that granted women voting rights from its inception, long before many Western countries. To permit such exclusion here is a blasphemy to our constitutional spirit.”
Raja further implored the Ministry of External Affairs to clarify how it sanctioned this ‘discriminatory spectacle.’ He emphasized, “This is not merely diplomatic nuance; it actively fuels a patriarchal ideology intent on erasing half the world from public life. We must condemn it unequivocally, without any hesitation.”