New Delhi: Amid months of uncertainty and debate over who would run the Afghan consulates and embassy in India, the Taliban regime has appointed an Afghan scholar Ikramuddin Kamil as the acting consul in the Afghan mission in Mumbai.
It is the first such appointment in India after Taliban captured power in Afghanistan more than three years ago. In Kabul, the Taliban foreign ministry announced the appointment of Kamil, who studied in India for seven years.
The announcement comes days after the external affairs ministry's point-person for Afghanistan held talks with the Taliban's acting defence minister, Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, in Kabul.
There was no official comment on the development from the Indian side. However, government sources indicated that New Delhi will accept Kamil's appointment.
Sources said a young Afghan student, who the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is familiar with and who has studied in India for seven years while completing his doctorate from the South Asia University on an MEA scholarship, has agreed to function as a diplomat in the Afghan consulate. "As far as his affiliation or status is concerned, for New Delhi, he is an Afghan national working for Afghans in India," they said.
The Taliban-controlled Bakhtar News Agency reported on Monday that Kamil "is currently in Mumbai, where he is fulfilling his duties as a diplomat representing the Islamic Emirate". The appointment is part of Kabul's efforts to strengthen diplomatic ties with India and enhance its presence abroad, the media outlet said.
Kamil holds a PhD in international law and previously served as the deputy director in the department of security cooperation and border affairs in the foreign ministry, it said. He is expected to facilitate consular services and represent the interests of Afghanistan in India, the report added.
Over the last three years, Afghan diplomats manning the Afghan embassy and consulates in India have sought refuge and asylum in different western countries and left India, the Indian government sources said. A lone former diplomat, who has continued to stay in India, has somehow kept the Afghan mission and consulates running, they said.
However, the fact remains that there is a large Afghan community based in India, which is in need of consular services, the sources said, adding that more staff is required to effectively service the Afghan nationals currently residing in India.
"As regards the issue of recognition, there is a set process for recognition of any government and India will continue to work with the international community on this issue," one of the sources said.
Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, the Taliban's deputy foreign minister for political affairs, also posted on X about Kamil's appointment. The appointment of Kamil is seen as part of efforts to facilitate consular services to the Afghan population in Mumbai.
There has been almost negligible presence of diplomatic staff at the Afghan missions in India. Most of the diplomats appointed by the Ashraf Ghani government have already left India.
It is pertinent to note that India has not recognized the Taliban since they took control through force in August 2021. India has kept a careful stance, focusing only on the humanitarian needs of the Afghan people. Since 2022, India has placed a "technical team" at its Embassy in Kabul, but it does not have a full Ambassador. (Agency inputs)
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