Sanchar Saathi App: Centre Clarifies Pre-installed App is Optional and Can be Deleted; Defends Move Against 'Snooping' Allegations
The Centre clarified that the pre-installed Sanchar Saathi app is optional and can be deleted by users, following a political row where the Opposition called it a 'snooping app'.
Government Responds to Political Uproar Over Mandatory Installation
The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has commenced the registration process for the General Duty (GD) Constable Recruitment 2026, offering a total of 25,487 vacancies across various central forces.
The recruitment drive aims to fill posts in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), the Secretariat Security Force (SSF), and Rifleman (GD) positions in Assam Rifles.
Key Clarifications from the Centre
The controversy began after the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) issued a directive to mobile handset makers to pre-install the Sanchar Saathi app on devices sold in India, which the DoT stated was a move to "strengthen cybersecurity and curbing IMEI misuse."
Union Minister for Communications, Jyotiraditya Scindia, issued a definitive clarification, emphasizing that the application is not mandatory.
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Optional for Users: "If you don't want Sanchar Sathi, you can delete it. It is optional... It is our duty to introduce this app to everyone. Keeping it in their devices or not, is up to the user," Scindia said.
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Government Role: The Minister stressed that the government's role was only to "introduce this app to everyone."
Opposition's "Snooping" Charge
The move triggered strong reactions from Opposition leaders, who raised serious privacy concerns and likened the app to "Pegasus," labeling it a "snooping app."
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Priyanka Gandhi called the move a "dictatorship" act, arguing, "Citizens have the right to privacy... without the government looking at everything."
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Shashi Tharoor also weighed in, stating that while such apps can be useful if they are voluntary, "Making anything compulsory in a democracy is troubling."
The Sanchar Saathi App is officially described as a "citizen-centric initiative of DoT to empower mobile subscribers, strengthen their security and increase awareness about citizen centric initiatives."
