NEW DELHI — The Indian government has ordered code-hosting platform GitHub to take down Bitchat, an offline peer-to-peer messaging application built by former Twitter chief executive Jack Dorsey, citing serious national security and law enforcement concerns.
The order was issued by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C), the cybercrime unit under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Jack Dorsey revealed the directive by publishing a copy of the official government notice on X (formerly Twitter), noting that Indian authorities oppose technologies like Bitchat.
Why Authorities Raised Red Flags
Launched last year, Bitchat relies on Bluetooth mesh networks to enable communication between nearby devices without requiring an active internet connection, cellular coverage, or centralized servers.
While designed to maintain communication during network outages or internet shutdowns, I4C warned that the app's architectural features create significant law enforcement hurdles. According to the notice, Bitchat allows completely anonymous usage without phone number verification, mandatory registration, or centralized transaction logs—making attribution, intercept, and criminal investigation nearly impossible for authorities.
Security agencies expressed concerns that anti-national elements, terrorist networks, and organized crime syndicates could exploit the platform to coordinate unlawful activities, circulate misinformation, and evade lawful surveillance.
Protests and Legal Allegations
The takedown request comes in the wake of reports indicating that demonstrators at a recent Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protest at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar used Bluetooth messaging tools to coordinate after local mobile data services were temporarily restricted.
In its official communication to GitHub, the I4C asserted that Bitchat violates multiple provisions of Indian law, including Sections 43, 84B, and 84C of the Information Technology Act, alongside Section 61 read with Sections 196 and 197 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Neither Microsoft-owned GitHub nor Indian government officials have issued further public statements regarding the enforcement timeline of the repository removal.
