WhatsApp and its parent company Meta have not informed the government of shutting down its services in India: Ashwini Vaishnaw
WhatsApp and its parent company Meta have not informed the government of shutting down its services in India: Ashwini Vaishnaw
Minister Vaishnaw confirms no notification from WhatsApp or Meta regarding service shutdown in India amid compliance concerns with the Information Technology Act.
IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw clarified that WhatsApp and its parent company Meta have not notified the Indian government about any plans to shut down services in the country. This statement comes amid growing concerns over compliance with the Information Technology Act, 2000, particularly regarding encryption and user privacy.
In response to a question raised in the Rajya Sabha, Vaishnaw stated, “The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has shared that WhatsApp or Meta has not informed the government about any such plans.” This was in reply to a query from Congress member Vivek Tankha, according to a news report on July 26.
Tankha had inquired whether WhatsApp was planning to cease its services in India due to government directives to share user details in compliance with Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Vaishnaw emphasized that the central government issues directions only in the interest of national sovereignty, defense, security, public order or preventing incitement to cognizable offenses related to these concerns.
Earlier this year, WhatsApp indicated to the Delhi High Court that it might stop functioning in India if compelled by the government to break message encryption, arguing that such a move would violate user privacy. WhatsApp has consistently challenged the newly amended IT Rules, deeming them unconstitutional and a violation of the right to privacy. The platform’s end-to-end encryption is designed to ensure that only the sender and recipient can access message content.
Tejas Karia, representing WhatsApp, told a Division Bench, “As a platform, we are saying, if we are told to break encryption, then WhatsApp goes.” He further explained that users prefer WhatsApp for its robust privacy features.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also highlighted India’s pivotal role in the company’s global strategy. During a virtual address at Meta’s annual event last year, he remarked, “India is a country that’s at the forefront… You’re leading the world in terms of how people and businesses have embraced messaging.”
WhatsApp boasts over 400 million users in India, making it the platform’s largest market. The clarification from Minister Vaishnaw aims to reassure users and stakeholders that there are currently no plans for WhatsApp to cease operations in India.
