Afghanistan proposes shifting Indian consulate in Jalalabad to a more secure location post terror attacks

NEW DELHI: Afghanistan has proposed shifting of the Indian consulate in Jalalabad from its present location to a relatively more secure place in the city. The consulate has seen several terror attacks, including a recent one last week. India will send a team to Jalalabad before taking a decision on the proposal, according to sources.

It was governor of Nangrahar province of Afghanistan, Salim Khan Kunduzi, who proposed shifting the consulate to a more secure location. During a meeting with Indian ambassador Manpreet Vohra in Jalalabad last week, Kunduzi also offered a more secure place for the mission. The consulate is currently located at ‘Ilaka No 2 in Habibabad’ of Jalalabad.

India had upgraded security for its embassy in Kabul and its consulates in Jalalabad, Kandahar, Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif following the recent spate of attacks on its missions. Security of Indian missions in Afghanistan have been a cause of worry for Delhi over the years.

A policeman and two civilians were killed in last week’s terror attack on the Jalalabad consulate, which also inflicted injuries to a few staffers of the Indian mission. Terrorists blew themselves up after the Afghan National Police personnel foiled their attempt to enter the consulate. According to the initial investigation by the National Directorate of Security of Afghanistan the terrorists had crossed over from Pakistan to Afghanistan to carry out the attack.

The Jalalabad consulate was attacked on August 3, 2013, too, when nine Afghans, mostly children, were killed. The consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif in northern Afghanistan was attacked by terrorists on January 3, followed by another attack near the Jalalabad consulate.