<p>Afghanistan's first non-Muslim woman MP Anarkali Kaur Honaryar never thought she would have to leave her country. But as the Taliban swept into Kabul, she had to take flight not getting a chance to even collect a handful of the soil as a memory of her motherland.</p>.<p>Honaryar, 36, a dentist, championed the cause of women in the highly patriarchal society of Afghanistan and led campaigns for the rights of the vulnerable communities. She dreamt of a life in a progressive and democratic Afghanistan.</p>.<p>"My dream is now shattered."</p>.<p>Honaryar still hopes that Afghanistan gets a government that protects the gains made in the last 20 years. "Maybe it's little, but we still have time."</p>.<p>Hostilities in Afghanistan had earlier forced the Sikh MP's relatives to move to India, Europe and Canada. Honaryar and her family reached India in an Indian Air Force's C-17 transport aircraft on Sunday morning amid a deteriorating situation in her country after the return of the Taliban.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/afghans-race-to-flee-taliban-after-biden-confirms-airlift-deadline-1023319.html" target="_blank">Read | Afghans race to flee Taliban after Biden confirms airlift deadline</a></strong></p>.<p>She overcame with emotions at the airport thinking whether she will be able to return home, ever.</p>.<p>"I didn't even get the time to take a fistful of my country's soil... a souvenir from my country. I could just touch the ground at the airport before boarding the flight," Honaryar told PTI as she broke into tears.</p>.<p>Staying at a hotel in Delhi, her ailing mother wants to go back to Kabul.</p>.<p>"I don't know what to tell her," Honaryar says.</p>.<p>In May 2009, Honaryar was chosen by Radio Free Europe's Afghan chapter as their "Person of the Year". The recognition made her a household name in Kabul.</p>.<p>A doctor by profession, the lawmaker recalls her days when she worked for the Afghan human rights commission and traversed the seemingly inaccessible mountains regions of the country.</p>.<p>"Muslim women trusted me despite not being from the same religion," she says.</p>.<p>Asked about her friends and co-workers who are still stuck in the conflict-torn nation, she says "We tried really hard to avoid a situation where we have to leave our country."</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/voice-of-jihad-taliban-spokesman-in-spotlight-after-shadowy-fight-1023300.html" target="_blank">Read | Voice of jihad: Taliban spokesman in spotlight after shadowy fight</a></strong></p>.<p>"My colleagues and my friends have been calling me, sending me messages. But how do I respond? Every call, every message breaks my heart, makes me cry. They think I am safe and at ease in Delhi, but how do I tell them that I miss them a lot."</p>.<p>Honaryar says the memories that she wants to keep are of the love she received in Afghanistan.</p>.<p>"In Afghanistan, people would swarm around me and click selfies when I would come out from meetings. They loved me because I was their voice in the National Assembly. I fought for everyone. The issues I raised, all my speeches, are part of the records of the Assembly," she said.</p>.<p>Among her recorded speeches is a vow that Honaryar took -- not to work for a Taliban government ever.</p>.<p>"I said a lot of things against the Taliban. My ideas and principles are completely opposite. I'm alive and hopeful. I will continue to work for Afghanistan from Delhi," she says. </p>.<p>Honaryar feels that the future is unpredictable for the people of Afghanistan.</p>.<p>"The people are so depressed that they are desperately clinging onto planes... as if those are buses that would take them to safety," she said gazing into a void.</p>.<p>The one question that troubles her the most is the future of women under Taliban rule.</p>.<p>"The Taliban said no one will be harmed. But peace does not mean non-violence. Peace means that they accept women as equals and recognize their rights," she said. </p>
<p>Afghanistan's first non-Muslim woman MP Anarkali Kaur Honaryar never thought she would have to leave her country. But as the Taliban swept into Kabul, she had to take flight not getting a chance to even collect a handful of the soil as a memory of her motherland.</p>.<p>Honaryar, 36, a dentist, championed the cause of women in the highly patriarchal society of Afghanistan and led campaigns for the rights of the vulnerable communities. She dreamt of a life in a progressive and democratic Afghanistan.</p>.<p>"My dream is now shattered."</p>.<p>Honaryar still hopes that Afghanistan gets a government that protects the gains made in the last 20 years. "Maybe it's little, but we still have time."</p>.<p>Hostilities in Afghanistan had earlier forced the Sikh MP's relatives to move to India, Europe and Canada. Honaryar and her family reached India in an Indian Air Force's C-17 transport aircraft on Sunday morning amid a deteriorating situation in her country after the return of the Taliban.</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/afghans-race-to-flee-taliban-after-biden-confirms-airlift-deadline-1023319.html" target="_blank">Read | Afghans race to flee Taliban after Biden confirms airlift deadline</a></strong></p>.<p>She overcame with emotions at the airport thinking whether she will be able to return home, ever.</p>.<p>"I didn't even get the time to take a fistful of my country's soil... a souvenir from my country. I could just touch the ground at the airport before boarding the flight," Honaryar told PTI as she broke into tears.</p>.<p>Staying at a hotel in Delhi, her ailing mother wants to go back to Kabul.</p>.<p>"I don't know what to tell her," Honaryar says.</p>.<p>In May 2009, Honaryar was chosen by Radio Free Europe's Afghan chapter as their "Person of the Year". The recognition made her a household name in Kabul.</p>.<p>A doctor by profession, the lawmaker recalls her days when she worked for the Afghan human rights commission and traversed the seemingly inaccessible mountains regions of the country.</p>.<p>"Muslim women trusted me despite not being from the same religion," she says.</p>.<p>Asked about her friends and co-workers who are still stuck in the conflict-torn nation, she says "We tried really hard to avoid a situation where we have to leave our country."</p>.<p><strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/voice-of-jihad-taliban-spokesman-in-spotlight-after-shadowy-fight-1023300.html" target="_blank">Read | Voice of jihad: Taliban spokesman in spotlight after shadowy fight</a></strong></p>.<p>"My colleagues and my friends have been calling me, sending me messages. But how do I respond? Every call, every message breaks my heart, makes me cry. They think I am safe and at ease in Delhi, but how do I tell them that I miss them a lot."</p>.<p>Honaryar says the memories that she wants to keep are of the love she received in Afghanistan.</p>.<p>"In Afghanistan, people would swarm around me and click selfies when I would come out from meetings. They loved me because I was their voice in the National Assembly. I fought for everyone. The issues I raised, all my speeches, are part of the records of the Assembly," she said.</p>.<p>Among her recorded speeches is a vow that Honaryar took -- not to work for a Taliban government ever.</p>.<p>"I said a lot of things against the Taliban. My ideas and principles are completely opposite. I'm alive and hopeful. I will continue to work for Afghanistan from Delhi," she says. </p>.<p>Honaryar feels that the future is unpredictable for the people of Afghanistan.</p>.<p>"The people are so depressed that they are desperately clinging onto planes... as if those are buses that would take them to safety," she said gazing into a void.</p>.<p>The one question that troubles her the most is the future of women under Taliban rule.</p>.<p>"The Taliban said no one will be harmed. But peace does not mean non-violence. Peace means that they accept women as equals and recognize their rights," she said. </p>