Gehlot slams Centre over Sanchar Saathi app, calls it attempt at mass surveillance

Jaipur, Dec 3 (PTI) Senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday accused the Centre of attempting to spy on citizens by making the 'Sanchar Saathi' app mandatory on all mobile phones.

Meanwhile, the government withdrew the order mandating the pre-installation of the app on smartphones by manufacturers.

In a post on X, Gehlot said mandating the app on every handset was "an attempt by the BJP government to violate citizens' privacy and spy on them".

"This is a new level of surveillance raj. Who a citizen talks to, and what they talk about, everything will now be accessible to the government," he wrote.

Gehlot dismissed security-related justifications for the move, saying existing laws already provide for surveillance under defined rules and safeguards.

"This is an attempt to intimidate and blackmail citizens. People must oppose it collectively," he added.

The controversy follows a November 28 order from the Telecom Ministry directing all mobile manufacturers to pre-install the Sanchar Saathi app on new devices and push it as a mandatory update on existing phones.

The directive drew political criticism. On Tuesday, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and several opposition members objected to making the app compulsory.

Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday said the app does not facilitate snooping and no surveillance is possible through it. A day before, he had also softened his stance and said the users are free to delete it if they wish, and that it will remain inactive till they register on it. PTI AG PRK PRK