As Pegasus ghost resurfaces, privacy storm grows, govt retreats
By B N KUMAR
MUMBAI, Dec 3 (The CONNECT): Branded by critics as “India’s Pegasus”, the Centre has been forced into a swift retreat over its Sanchar Saathi mobile app, days after ordering every new smartphone to carry it pre-installed. The mandate sparked immediate resistance from telecom experts, digital rights advocates and alert users who feared the tool could evolve into a mass-surveillance gateway capable of tracking citizen movements.
The backlash, viewed in the backdrop of the unresolved Pegasus dispute, assumes far greater significance at a time when public mistrust over digital monitoring remains unaddressed.
When reports surfaced that the Israeli spyware may have been used against Indian journalists, political leaders, activists and other public figures, the disclosures triggered a national uproar.
A Supreme Court-appointed technical committee later reported that it could not conclusively establish the presence of Pegasus on the examined devices. The investigation faltered as several individuals declined to submit their phones, and the Centre refused to file a detailed affidavit citing national security.
With “no conclusive evidence” on record, the Court closed the matter, leaving the issue unresolved and public suspicion lingering.
Against this background, the Sanchar Saathi mandate was seen as yet another step that could potentially erode digital privacy. The fears were amplified by the Pegasus episode, with the spyware’s developer NSO Group stating that it sells its tools only to governments, while the Modi administration declined to confirm or deny whether India was among its customers.
Critics also pointed to extreme examples of surveillance in authoritarian regimes such as North Korea, where a smuggled state-issued smartphone was found to automatically take screenshots every five minutes and store them in hidden folders accessible only to authorities—a chilling reminder of how pre-installed systems can be weaponised to monitor citizens.
Political observers noted that the Centre had earlier withdrawn the three contentious farm laws after a year-long nationwide farmer agitation—an episode that still shapes perceptions of policy reversals, especially when the government is seen as attempting to bulldoze its way through while disregarding democratic opposition.
Amid rising backlash, the government abruptly reversed course, announcing that “given Sanchar Saathi’s increasing acceptance”, pre-installation would no longer be mandatory. The climbdown came even as BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra publicly defended the app, insisting it does not read messages or monitor calls—claims dismissed by critics as insufficient without transparent audits.
Seeking to stabilise the narrative, Union Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia sought to brush aside the criticism, asserting that Sanchar Saathi is “completely democratic and fully voluntary”.
He maintained that users may activate the app at their convenience and delete it whenever they wish, describing consumer protection as the government’s foremost responsibility. Scindia said the platform enables citizens to report suspicious calls directly from their logs, helping protect less-aware users and strengthening participatory vigilance.
The government highlighted measurable outcomes from the wider Sanchar Saathi initiative: more than 21.5 crore portal visits, 1.4 crore app downloads, over 1.43 crore mobile connections surrendered under “Not My Number”, 26 lakh lost or stolen phones traced with more than seven lakh returned, nearly 41 lakh fraudulent connections disconnected based on citizen reports, 6.2 lakh fraud-linked IMEIs blocked, and an estimated ₹475 crore in potential financial losses prevented through the Financial Fraud Risk Indicator.
Scindia reiterated that digital security for every citizen remains a top priority and that users retain complete freedom to activate or delete the app at any time—now without any government mandate compelling them to keep it on their devices.
