POBNEWS24,Dhaka, Sept 4,2021: A spokesman for the group, which took control of Afghanistan last month, said the Taliban would speak out on behalf of Muslims in Indian-administered Kashmir.
“As Muslims, we have the right to speak out for Muslims in Kashmir, India or any other country in the world,” said Suhail Shaheen, a spokesman for the BBC.
Two separate parts of Muslim-majority Kashmir are controlled by India and Pakistan; Both countries have been claiming the entire part of Kashmir as theirs alone.
For the last 30 years, Indian-administered Kashmir has been witnessing turmoil and violence due to the strong pro-independence movement.
The Taliban took control of Afghanistan last month after US troops left, and the militant group is set to announce a new government soon.
One of their spokespersons spoke for the first time about Indian-administered Kashmir.
Earlier, two senior Taliban officials had said that the whole of Kashmir was in question.
“Kashmir is not under our control, and interference is against our policy,” 18K Taliban leader Anas Haqqani told CNN-News.
In an interview with a Pakistan-based channel, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid called on New Delhi and Islamabad to resolve their differences through dialogue.
Shaheen told the BBC that the Taliban had no policy of carrying out armed operations in any country.
The group’s spokesman spoke at a time when India has expressed concern about the security of Afghanistan’s Hindu and Sikh minorities under the Taliban.
Analysts have long been concerned about the rise in attacks and persecution of Muslims in India since Narendra Modi became prime minister in 2014.
Two years ago, the Indian government revoked almost everything in Article 370 of the Constitution and took away the autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir; The valley has been warmer than ever since.
Many fear that many factions of the Taliban may turn their eyes to Indian-administered Kashmir after taking control of Afghanistan; Many small and large groups in Pakistan can also add ghee to it.
In a recent widely circulated video clip, Neelam Irshad Sheikh, the leader of Pakistan’s ruling party, was heard saying in a TV debate, “The Taliban have said they are with us and they will help us liberate Kashmir.”
Although the United States, Russia and China have been able to hold direct talks with the Taliban since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, India has had to step in cautiously.
The Haqqani network, which has close ties to the Taliban, has repeatedly attacked Indian citizens, officials and installations in the past; Carnegie India said in a report on India’s Afghan strategy after the withdrawal of US troops that the Indian embassy in Kabul had been attacked.
Shaheen, a Taliban spokesman, said what was being said about the Haqqani network was a “mere claim”.
“The Haqqanis are not a separate group. They are part of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. They are the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, ”he said.
A US spokesman recently claimed that the Taliban and the Haqqani network were separate organizations.
Shaheen also denied allegations that the Taliban helped the hijackers flee after an Indian plane hijacked in 1999 was flown to Afghanistan. He said New Delhi should be happy for what the Taliban did then.
“India requested us to allow the plane to land (in Kandahar) as it was running out of fuel. We also helped free them, “said Tariq al-Hashimi, the party’s secretary general.
