Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi slams PM Modi for allowing women journalists to be excluded from the Taliban foreign minister’s press conference in New Delhi, calling it an insult to Indian women.

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding answers over the absence of women journalists at the press briefing held for Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi. Calling it an “insult to India’s most competent women,” she questioned the government’s silence on the matter.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Priyanka wrote that if the Prime Minister’s commitment to women’s rights is more than “mere election posturing,” he must clarify how such discrimination was permitted on Indian soil. The press event, organized at the Afghan Embassy, reportedly restricted participation to a few male journalists, a decision said to have been made by the Taliban delegation itself.

Former Union minister P Chidambaram also expressed dismay, suggesting that male journalists should have boycotted the briefing in solidarity. Karti Chidambaram and Shama Mohamed joined the criticism, accusing the Ministry of External Affairs of yielding to Taliban-imposed restrictions — a move they called “disappointing” and “undignified.”

The Taliban regime, known globally for curbing women’s freedoms, has continued to face international outrage for its gender-based policies. During the New Delhi interaction, Muttaqi sidestepped questions on women’s rights, instead asserting that “every nation has its own laws and customs.”

Editorial Perspective: This controversy is more than a diplomatic misstep — it’s a reflection of India’s moral dilemma in balancing realpolitik with principles of equality. At a time when India positions itself as a champion of women’s empowerment globally, allowing a foreign delegation to impose gender bias at a press event raises serious concerns. The government must ensure that such incidents never recur, safeguarding both India’s image and its journalists’ dignity.