(The writer is director, Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore and contributing editor on international affairs for The Indian Express. This column first appeared in the print edition on August 17, 2021)
- As we reflect on the rapid collapse of the Afghan government and the triumphant return of the Taliban, it is worth recalling the insight of K M Panikkar on the relationship between Kabul and Delhi. Panikkar affirmed that developments in the Kabul Valley inevitably affect the empires of the Gangetic plains. He was referring to the innumerable invaders consolidating in the Herat and Kabul valleys before attacking northern India’s heartland…