Saharanpur, Oct 11: Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Saturday voiced confidence that the India-Afghanistan ties will grow stronger in future as he thanked the people for the welcome he received during his visit to Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, one of the most influential Islamic seminaries in South Asia.
“We will be sending new diplomats, and I hope you people will visit Kabul as well. I have hopes for stronger ties in the future from the way I was received in Delhi. These visits may be frequent in the near future,” Muttaqi said here. The Afghan leader, who reached Deoband from Delhi by road with his delegation, was welcomed by Mohtamim (vice-chancellor) of Darul Uloom Deoband Abul Qasim Nomani, president of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind Maulana Arshad Madani and officials of Darul Uloom, amid a floral shower.
Hundreds of students of the Islamic seminary and a large number of locals who had gathered at the Deoband campus jostled to shake hands with the visiting foreign dignitary, but were stopped by security personnel.
“I am thankful for such a grand welcome and the affection shown by the people here. I hope that India-Afghanistan ties advance further,” the Afghan foreign minister told reporters.
Prior to his arrival, intelligence and security agencies made extensive arrangements at Deoband. Officials from the Afghan embassy in Delhi arrived here on Friday for the high-level visit and met officials at Darul Uloom to review all arrangements.
Muttaqi, who landed in New Delhi on Thursday on a six-day trip, is the first senior Taliban minister to visit India after the group seized power four years back. India has not yet recognised the Taliban set up.
Kabul will soon send its diplomats to India as part of “step-by-step” efforts to improve bilateral relations, Muttaqi had said on Friday, even as he asserted the Taliban will not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against other countries.
Muttaqi also pitched for India and Afghanistan joining hands to remove obstacles for the development of the Chabahar port in Iran in view of the Trump administration bringing it under sanctions.
The Afghan foreign minister’s visit to India assumed greater significance as it came at a time when both India and Afghanistan are having frosty relations with Pakistan over a range of issues, including cross-border terrorism. (PTI)
