‘Men journalists should have walked out’: Outrage as women barred from Taliban press meet in Delhi

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra has strongly criticised the Union government and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar after reports emerged that Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi held a press conference in New Delhi that excluded women journalists.

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

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Moitra questioned the Indian government's decision to allow a gender-exclusive event on its soil while extending official protocol to a representative of the Taliban, a regime known for its oppressive policies against women.

"How dare our government allow Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Muttaqi to exclude women journalists and hold a ‘male-only’ news conference on Indian soil with full protocol? How dare @DrSJaishankar agree to this? And why did our emasculated spineless male journos remain in the room?" she posted.

How dare our government allow Taliban foreign minister Amir Muttaqi to exclude women journalists & hold a ‘male-only’ news conference on Indian soil with full protocol? How dare @DrSJAishankar agree to this? & why did our emasculated spineless male journos remain in room?

— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) October 10, 2025

“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),” said Congress leader P Chidambaram.

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to clarify his position on the absence of women journalists from a press conference of visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, and described the incident as an “insult to some of India’s most competent women”.

The Congress general secretary said if the prime minister’s recognition of women’s rights isn’t just convenient posturing from one election to the other, how has this “insult to some of India’s most competent women been allowed in our country”.

“Prime Minister @narendramodi 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,” she said on X.

Muttaqi, who arrived in India on Thursday, held bilateral talks with Jaishankar on Friday. Following the meeting, India announced that it would upgrade its technical mission in Kabul to the status of a full-fledged embassy — a significant shift in diplomatic engagement with the Taliban-led administration in Afghanistan.

“India is fully committed to the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence of Afghanistan. I am pleased to announce the upgrading of India’s Technical Mission to the status of embassy," Jaishankar stated.

However, the controversy arose after women journalists were barred from attending a press briefing held by Muttaqi at the Afghan embassy in Delhi. Despite adhering to the prescribed dress code, several female reporters were denied entry, sparking widespread criticism on social media.

Many journalists voiced their outrage online. The Taliban regime, which returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021, has faced global condemnation for its harsh restrictions on women, including bans on education, employment and participation in public life.