‘RSS-BJP masters, Taliban slaves’: Pakistan army spokesman flays ‘Muslims befriending kafirs’

Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, Pakistan's military spokesman, harshly criticized the relationship between the Taliban regime and India's ruling establishment, likening it to that of a "master and slave." The outspoken general, addressing a press conference in Rawalpindi on July 31, invoked a Quranic verse to warn against befriending disbelievers (kafirs), stating that such an act renders one no longer a Muslim.

Chaudhry specifically took issue with remarks made by Mawlawi (Maulvi) Ataullah Omari, the Taliban's minister of agriculture, who had recently visited India and claimed to feel at home there. The general's scathing remarks, delivered during a briefing on Pakistan's counter-terrorism efforts and the security situation in Balochistan, drew attention to the Taliban regime's treatment of women, children, and its disregard for Islamic values.

Chaudhry further argued that the relationship between India's ruling BJP and its parent organization, the RSS — self-described as Hindu nationalist groups — and the Taliban regime was religiously impermissible, characterized by the Taliban serving as the master to the BJP/RSS's slave. He accused the Taliban regime of perpetuating the oppression of Muslims and Kashmiris, echoing Pakistan's longstanding concerns about the group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan's (TTP) activities.

Despite not recognizing the Taliban as an official government, India has been gradually increasing its engagement with Kabul, including the restoration of diplomatic relations in 2022 and hosting a Taliban foreign minister for a visit in 2025. The Pakistani military spokesman's comments, however, have not yet elicited a response from India.