NEW DELHI, Sept 6: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval at his residence on Monday evening to discuss the rapidly changing situation in Afghanistan. Foreign minister S Jaishankar and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman were also present at the meeting.
With Taliban claims of total control over the country and the presence of the chief of Pakistan intelligence agency ISI in Kabul, even more than three weeks after Taliban seized control of Kabul, there is still no clarity on the formation of a government. India, officials said, is closely watching the top resistance leadership, who are believed to be in Tajikistan. Monday’s discussion is also reported to have focused on engagement with the Taliban.
Last week, India’s envoy to Qatar Deepak Mittal held talks with a top Taliban leader in Doha. The foreign ministry said New Delhi’s immediate focus is to ensure that Afghan soil is not used for terror activities against India and the evacuations and the discussions were on those lines.
The ISI chief was in Kabul to sort out differences between the Taliban factions and the Haqqani network, which has been holding up government formation, sources said. “Taliban wants inclusive government but it has been three weeks now… it simply reflects the difficulties arising within their various factions,” said a senior government official.
Modi has formed a high-level group to focus on the immediate priorities of India in view of the evolving situation in Afghanistan. Sources said the group comprises S Jaishankar, Doval and other senior officials. The group has been monitoring the ground situation in Afghanistan and the international reactions to it.
(Manas Dasgupta)
