Controversion increased by the fact that women journalists were away from press conferences, Muttaki gave explanation; Opposition -Target Center -Controversion Women's Journalists Persian Conferences Muttaqi Reigning Opposition -Teiken

Updated: Sun, 12 Oct 2025 11:23 PM (IST) Afghanistan’s foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaki, did not invite female journalists to the press conference as a ‘technical error’ and not a deliberate decision. He also said that it is not said that women’s education is religious Haram, but that it was temporarily stopped. This incident has provoked a major controversy, with the opposition and media organizations calling it discriminatory. Congress, CPM and media organizations have expressed a strong protest march (file photo) Digital Desk, New Delhi. Foreign Minister Khan Muttaki, Afghanistan, on Sunday clarified the controversy over women journalists who were not invited to the press conference. He said it was not the result of any deliberate decision, but just a technical error. Remove ads that read news muttaki only, said: “The press conference was suddenly scheduled and a short list of journalists was prepared. It was only a technical matter, there were no other reason behind it. Our colleagues sent invitations to a limited number of journalists.” He further said: “More than 2.8 million girls are studying in Afghanistan. There are some restrictions on education, but we have never called women’s education religiously, it has only been temporarily stopped.” Riot about the absence of women’s journalists: Not a single female journalist was present at the first press conference of Muttaki on Friday, thereby creating a great controversy. The opposition calls it an ‘insult’ for women and has criticized the government. Congress parliament Rahul Gandhi has dropped to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that if he allows women to be kept away from public platforms, it shows that he is “weak in the protection of women’s rights”. Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram also expressed dissatisfaction with the incident, saying that male journalists should have had a hike when they realized that their female colleagues had not been invited. Response from the government and media organizations CPI (M) secretary secretary MA Baby calls it a condemnable step and said the Indian government accepted the Taliban’s conditions. The editorial Guild of India and the Indian Women Press Corps (IWPC) described the incident as discriminatory and said it could not be justified under diplomatic privilege. Sources of the Foreign Ministry made clear that the Indian government had no role in organizing the press conference. The event was organized by the office of the Consul General of Afghanistan and the list of journalists was decided by Taliban officials.