Govt U-turn; Sanchar Saathi pre-installation scrapped amid opposition attack

NEW DELHI: Days after proposing to mandate the pre-installation of the Sanchar Saathi app on all mobile handsets imported or manufactured in India, the Ministry of Communications has withdrawn the requirement, citing the app’s rapidly growing acceptance among users.

In an official statement, the Ministry said the initial mandate was introduced with the intent of ensuring universal access to cybersecurity tools. “With an intent to provide access to cyber security to all citizens, the government had mandated pre-installation of the Sanchar Saathi app on all smartphones,” the Ministry noted. It added that, given the app’s accelerating adoption, making pre-installation compulsory for mobile manufacturers was no longer necessary.

Reiterating the app’s purpose, the government emphasised that Sanchar Saathi is a secure platform created solely to safeguard citizens from cyber criminals. “It helps in Jan Bhagidari by all citizens in reporting such bad actors and actions while protecting users themselves. There is no other function other than protecting the users in the app, and they can remove the app whenever they want. This has been clarified by the government,” the Ministry stated.

According to official data, the app already has 1.4 crore users and contributes information on nearly 2,000 fraud incidents every day. The ministry highlighted that the app’s user base is expanding rapidly — a surge partly attributed to the recent public attention. “Just in the last one day, 6 lakh citizens have registered for downloading the app, which is a 10x increase in its uptake. This is an affirmation of faith by citizens in this app for protecting themselves,” the statement said.

Earlier, Union Minister for Telecommunications Jyotiraditya Scindia addressed the Lok Sabha to clarify widespread concerns around the app’s functioning and privacy implications. Responding to a question by Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda, Scindia stressed that the app is voluntary and cannot operate without user consent. “If the app is on your phone, it does not mean it will operate automatically. Till the user registers in the app, it will not operate,” he said.

Scindia also dismissed allegations of snooping, asserting that the app contains no features that enable surveillance or call monitoring. Emphasising its consumer-protection benefits, he noted that the Sanchar Saathi platform helped prevent financial frauds amounting to ₹22,800 crore in 2024. “We have one billion users, but there are elements who use it in a negative manner. It is the government’s duty to keep citizens safe,” he told the House.

Despite the government’s clarifications, the Opposition mounted a fierce political attack on the BJP over the move to mandate activation of the app. Critics claimed it represented yet another attempt to extend surveillance into the private spaces of citizens.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, in a post on social media platform X, alleged that the BJP’s governance had increasingly threatened citizens’ freedoms and privacy. “Those whose history itself has been one of spying, how can they possibly give up espionage? In the BJP government, the freedom of expression was already being snatched away; now, even the private conversations within homes, families, relatives, friendships, and businesses will come under the vulture-like gaze of BJP members and their associates,” he wrote.

Yadav further claimed that only a change in government could safeguard people’s privacy, declaring, “Now that the public has decided that it doesn't want the BJP government, it simply doesn't want it. If the BJP goes, privacy can be saved.”