Apple has decided not to comply with a confidential directive from the Indian government requiring all smartphone manufacturers to preload the state-owned Sanchar Saathi application on devices sold in the country. Sources familiar with the matter confirmed that the company intends to formally communicate its refusal to New Delhi, citing serious privacy and security implications for its iOS ecosystem.

The Indian telecom ministry issued the mandate earlier this week, giving companies including Apple, Samsung, and Xiaomi just 90 days to integrate the app and ensure it cannot be disabled or removed. For devices already in the supply chain, manufacturers have been instructed to deploy the application through mandatory software updates. The government describes Sanchar Saathi as a critical tool to combat mobile theft, IMEI spoofing, and fraud in India’s vast second-hand device market.

Privacy advocates and opposition leaders have condemned the order as a blatant surveillance mechanism that would grant authorities potential access to hundreds of millions of smartphones. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and senior party member KC Venugopal labeled the move “Big Brother” overreach, with the party demanding an immediate rollback of the mandate.

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Unlike Android manufacturers that can modify their open-source operating system, Apple maintains complete control over iOS and has never permitted any government worldwide to force pre-installation of third-party applications. Industry sources state that Apple views compliance as fundamentally incompatible with its global security standards and will firmly reject the directive on those grounds.

While Samsung and other Android brands are still reviewing their response, Apple reportedly has no intention of seeking legal confrontation or making a public statement, choosing instead to convey its position privately to authorities. The standoff adds fresh tension to Apple’s already strained relationship with Indian regulators amid an ongoing antitrust dispute.

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