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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Kabul on December 25 to inaugurate the new Afghan parliament building constructed with funds from New Delhi, after the original building was bombed by the Taliban.
The buzz surrounding Modi's visit epitomised the warm relations between the two countries, while the story of the Afghan parliament symbolises the fragile country's ongoing struggle with an insurgency many Afghans blame on neighbour and Indian rival, Pakistan.The day after Modi visited Kabul he was in Lahore to become the first Indian premier to visit Pakistan in over a decade, fuelling hope of better relations between the two countries.
But for many Afghans that have witnessed their own President Ashraf Ghani's failed attempt at outreach to Pakistan, Modi and India remain the main attraction in terms of the country's strategic orientation.
A poll from last year showed three out of four Afghans see India as their preferred leader in Asia.
Relations with India, both in the areas of security and civilian aid have been vital for Afghanistan in the post-Taliban era when Pakistan has proved a less constant source of friendship.
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As Modi visited, Afghan social media circles poured out their love for India, at the obvious expense of the country's other significant neighbour.
Screenshot of a post from a public Facebook profile of an Afghan social media user. The post ironically compares India's contribution to Afghanistan's development to that of Pakistan, viewed through the prism of the Taliban.
The growth in India-Afghanistan relations in the post-Taliban era was most notable under President Hamid Karzai who famously offered Indian investors
“the red carpet while others will get a grey carpet.”
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