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Taliban minister's Taj Mahal visit called off, Agra Police says call from Delhi
Amir Khan Muttaqi was expected to tour the Taj Mahal and attend a lunch at a star-category hotel near the eastern gate before returning to Delhi.
Afghanistan’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s scheduled visit to the Taj Mahal in Agra on Sunday was cancelled at the last moment, with no reason cited by officials.
Muttaqi was expected to spend about an hour and a half at the monument and attend a lunch at a star-category hotel near the eastern gate before returning to Delhi.
Agra’s Deputy Commissioner of Police, Sonam Kumar, said the directive to cancel the visit came from Delhi, but he expressed inability to assign any specific reason.
A senior conservation assistant at the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) posted at the Taj Mahal said that the visit has been "called off.” Authorities have not yet provided any explanation for the cancellation.
The Taliban minister landed in New Delhi on Thursday and is on a six-day visit to India. During his stay, Amir Muttaqi also help high-level talks with external affairs minister S Jaishankar at the Afghanistan embassy followed by a press conference.
The event sparked controversy after no woman journalist was allowed at the press meet, sparking speculation that India had restricted access. The ministry of external affairs, however, clarified on Saturday that it had “no involvement” in the Afghan foreign minister’s press interaction in Delhi.
Amir Muttaqi is the first high-ranking Taliban minister to visit India since the group took control four years ago, even though the government of India has not formally recognised the Taliban administration in Afghanistan.
Kabul’s foreign minister on Saturday visited Darul Uloom Deoband in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur district, one of South Asia’s most prominent Islamic seminaries.
His visit to India comes amid strained ties between both New Delhi and Kabul with Islamabad over issues such as cross-border terrorism and regional security concerns.
(With inputs from HT correspondent)
