Sanchar Saathi app not mandatory, Scindia slams Opposition

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has said the Sanchar Saathi app, a fraud reporting app the government wants pre-installed on all devices, can be deleted by users. Users can decide to keep the Sanchar Saathi app or delete it, Scindia told reporters on Tuesday. The Department of Telecom has directed manufacturers and importers of mobile handsets to ensure that its fraud reporting app, Sanchar Saathi, is pre-installed on all new devices and installed via a software update on existing handsets. Scindia said, "Don't activate it (Sanchar Saathi). If you want to keep it in your phone, keep it. If you want to delete it, do so." The minister said he was trying to shatter the myths regarding Sanchar Saathi. "This is a matter of customer protection. There is nothing mandatory. If you do not want to register it, don't. It will stay dormant. And if you want to delete it, delete it. But not every person in the country knows that there is an app to protect him/her from fraud. So it is our responsibility to spread the information," he said, explaining the rationale behind the government's directive to phone manufacturers. Scindia said the Opposition is desperately looking for an issue. "It is the government's responsibility to shatter myths. That's what I am doing. In 2024, cyberfraud worth Rs 22,800 took place in our country. The opposition is asking us how we will stop fraud and when we are giving Sanchar Saathi to the common citizen, they are saying it is (snooping tool) Pegasus. We cannot show truth to those who don't want to see it," he said.

“साइबर फ्रॉड से बचाने के लिए संचार साथी को देश के हर नागरिक तक पहुंचाना हमारी जिम्मेदारी है।” pic.twitter.com/mfRwsUX0wC

— Jyotiraditya M. Scindia (@JM_Scindia) December 2, 2025

The Congress has flagged potential privacy risks due to the Centre's directions to the phone manufacturers. Party leader KC Venugopal has said the move 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," he said on X.

Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra called Sanchar Saathi a "snooping app". "It's ridiculous. Citizens have the right to privacy. This isn't just about snooping on telephones - overall, they are turning this country into a dictatorship in every possible form," he said. Priyanka Chaturvedi, Rajya Sabha MP from Shiv Sena (UBT), said the Centre's move is "another BIG BOSS surveillance moment".