The pointless controversy over ‘Sanchar Sathi’ 

December 5, 2025

Abhishek Vij

With the country’s growing digital power, cybercrimes appear to have risen as well. The Supreme Court recently expressed concern over digital arrests, calling them a serious crime and urging the CBI to apprehend the perpetrators. The number of cybercrimes being committed is not commensurate with the number of criminals caught, nor are the punishments meted out. Recovering the money stolen by cybercriminals becomes nearly impossible. The government, taking cognizance of cybercrimes, first mandated that the Sanchar Sathi app be installed on every new mobile phone. This app can be used to determine whether mobile numbers are genuine or fake and whether calls are legitimate or fraudulent.

First, let’s learn about Sanchar Sathi. It was launched in 2023 as the Sanchar Sathi portal. It was launched in January 2025 as a mobile app. It is a cybersecurity tool that enables the monitoring of mobile connections. Fraudulent calls can be avoided. Furthermore, the central government has mandated that mobile services such as WhatsApp, JioChat, and Josh, along with Telegram, Signal, Snapchat, and ShareChat, will only work if they are linked to an active SIM. The opposition, led by the Congress party, has called the app a spy app. The Congress party stated that the government has introduced it to enforce its dictatorship in the country. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge stated that the app is another attempt by the government to stifle public voice.

The central government’s mandate to pre-install it on mobile phones without taking various stakeholders and citizens into confidence is dictatorial. Will the government now also spy on what citizens talk to their family and friends? This order has shocked major mobile companies. To avoid custoTo avoid customer complaints, they may request that the government not make this app mandatory on every mobile phone. Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia dismissed this debate and suspicion as unreasonable and baseless, stating that consumers can delete or uninstall the app. It will not be mandatory for every user.
The debate actually began on November 28th, when the Department of Telecommunications mandated that the Sanchar Sathi app must be installed on all new mobile phones within 90 days of that date. The opposition called this order an intrusion into people’s personal lives and said it amounted to spying. Therefore, the app’s mandatory requirement should be abolished, a demand the government has made clear. The government states that the app has been very successful. It has led to the shutdown of 27 million fake connections, recovered 2 million stolen phones, and returned 750,000 phones to users.
Despite the opposition’s concerns, widespread downloads of Sanchar Sathi demonstrate that public fear of cybercrime is driving its acceptance. While controversy persists, the general public’s willingness to embrace the app suggests that the need for digital security currently outweighs political objections.