‘Surveillance, Beyond Unconstitutional’: DoT Sanchar Saathi Directive Sparks Outrage

The Narendra Modi government’s directive to smartphone manufacturers to pre-install Sanchar Saathi app has sparked a huge outrage

New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government’s directive to smartphone manufacturers to pre-install Sanchar Saathi app has sparked a huge outrage.

The Department of Telecommunication (DoT) in the directive cited cyber security and fraud reporting capabilities of the app while asking the phone makers to pre-install it in all devices.

The DoT directive also asked the phone makers to install the Sanchar Saathi app in existing phones via forced update.

The opposition parties are however not convinced and have termed the move something which is “beyond unconstitutional”.

"Big Brother cannot watch us. The Right to Privacy is an intrinsic part of the fundamental right to life and liberty, enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution," Senior Congress leader KC Venugopal wrote on social media platform X.

"A pre-loaded government app that cannot be uninstalled is a dystopian tool to monitor every Indian. It is a means to watch over every movement, interaction and decision of each citizen. We reject this Direction and demand an immediate rollback," he added.

“Another Big Boss Surveillance Moment”

Slamming the government’s move, Rajya Sabha MP from Shiv Sena (UBT) Priyanka Chaturvedi, said the move is "another BIG BOSS surveillance moment".

"Such shady ways to get into individual phones will be protested and opposed… If the IT Ministry thinks that instead of creating robust redressal systems it will create surveillance systems then it should be ready for a pushback," she said.

Sanchar Saathi was launched on January 17, 2025 by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) which claimed that the app, a citizen-centric tool, brings robust security features and fraud-reporting capabilities directly to users’ smartphones.

The ministry claimed the app crossed 50 lakh downloads in August this year, and has blocked over 37.28 lakh stolen/lost mobile devices and traced more than 22.76 lakh devices since its launch.

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