Meanwhile, Pakistan is caught in a nightmare situation, receiving not just a bloody nose from the Taliban, but a very real two-front scenario with the Taliban-led Afghanistan becoming a sworn enemy of Islamabad. This is one of the most ground-breaking events for India’s strategic posture and a bitter irony for Pakistan.

As Pakistan launches cross-border strikes and drone attacks on Afghan soil, Delhi and Kabul find themselves aligned against a shared adversary. Afghanistan has promised to continue standing with India against terror, and not harming Indian interests from its soil. It has also invited India for reconstruction efforts after the earthquake, and India has also offered to help with Afghan refugees that were expelled by Pakistan. India, meanwhile, stood with Kabul against US President Donald Trump’s Bagram plans.

Here’s what Taliban’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said while in New Delhi: “During the 20-year struggle against the US occupation, there were many ups and downs, but not once did we give a statement against India."

The irony is hard to miss. The same group that once burned Indian flags and sheltered anti-India terrorists is now hosting Indian diplomats, inviting Indian firms to mine on Afghan soil, and talking about ‘standing with India against terror’.

What was once Islamabad’s proxy is now New Delhi’s potential partner. In fact, the level of engagement with this Taliban official was unprecedented during his India visit. He met S Jaishankar, the external affairs minister. He met Afghan Hindus and Sikhs to discuss their religious properties. He met Indian journalists twice—first in a men-only session that drew backlash, then again with women reporters included. This indicated the sincerity of the two sides to accommodate each other’s positions. Clearly, whatever is brewing between India and Afghanistan’s new regime cannot be torpedoed by cultural differences.

Message From Deoband

The Taliban leader visited Deoband in Uttar Pradesh to engage with the Darul Uloom Deoband. This has been read in many ways and rightly criticised, but think of why this was really allowed by Indian authorities, despite the optics. Strategically, this was the........

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