Congress Slams BJP’s ‘Sanchar Saathi’ App Mandate as ‘Orwellian’ Overreach, Demands Rollback

A fierce political storm erupted on Wednesday as Congress launched a scathing attack on the BJP-led government’s directive mandating the pre-installation of the ‘Sanchar Saathi’ app on all new mobile phones. The move, intended to enhance digital security, has sparked sharp criticism over privacy concerns and alleged government surveillance.

Congress leader and AICC Media Chief Pawan Khera condemned the mandate as an “Orwellian intrusion,” challenging the government’s claim that the app is optional and can be removed. “The BJP government has been brazenly snooping on citizens, but when caught red-handed this time, it attempted to mislead the entire nation with a false and deceptive ‘clarification,’” Khera said. He pointed to Section 7(b) of the government’s own directive, which states that the pre-installed app cannot be removed or disabled, calling the government’s defence a “blatant lie” aimed at “feeding misinformation to 140 crore Indians.”

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Khera framed the mandate as a severe violation of the Supreme Court-affirmed Right to Privacy. “In the BJP’s dictionary, IT no longer means ‘Information Technology’; it stands for ‘Identity Theft.’ This diktat is a chilling attempt to normalise mass surveillance, compromising personal data and intruding into the most intimate aspects of citizens’ lives,” he asserted.

Responding in the Lok Sabha, Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has dismissed the allegations, insisting the app cannot monitor users and only activates upon registration. “Snooping is neither possible nor will it ever happen through the app,” he said, defending the government’s position amid escalating political debate.

Khera further criticised another recent government order requiring platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram to link user accounts to active SIMs and enforce automatic logout of web sessions every six hours. He described this as a “suffocating measure” turning private communications into “state-monitored activity,” accusing the government of “punishing 80 crore digital users to expand its surveillance grid.”

Demanding the immediate withdrawal of these measures, Khera warned, “The people of India will not allow their privacy, autonomy, and freedom to be violated under the pretext of governance.”

The controversy highlights the growing tensions between digital security initiatives and citizens’ privacy rights, sparking a critical debate on the balance between state oversight and individual freedoms in India’s rapidly evolving digital landscape.