An Afghan diplomat, Zakia Wardak, resigned from her position as consul-general of Afghanistan in Mumbai, India on May 4th, 2024. Reports emerged last week that she was detained at Mumbai airport on suspicion of smuggling gold from Dubai. However, Wardak made no mention of the allegations in her resignation statement.
Wardak stated that during her tenure as Afghanistan's only female diplomat, she faced 'organized attacks' and 'defamation.' She added that these attacks severely impacted her ability to effectively operate in her role and demonstrated the challenges faced by women in Afghan society. Wardak was appointed consul-general of Afghanistan in Mumbai before the Taliban seized power in 2021.
The Taliban, who took over Afghanistan during the final weeks of US and NATO withdrawal from the country, have barred women from most areas of public life and stopped girls from attending school beyond the sixth grade as part of harsh measures they imposed despite initial promises of a more moderate rule. They are also restricting women's access to work, travel, and health care if they are unmarried or don't have a male guardian and arresting those who don't comply with their interpretation of hijab.
It is not clear whether Wardak was indeed Afghanistan's only female diplomat. She collaborated with the Taliban as consul-general after they seized power in 2021. The Taliban Foreign Ministry did not return calls for comment on her resignation.
Wardak's resignation comes after she was intercepted at Mumbai airport by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence with 25 kilograms of gold, worth approximately Rs 18 crore. She was not arrested due to diplomatic immunity.
The Indian government has yet to comment on Wardak's resignation or the allegations against her.
