Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday unleashed a devastating assault on the Modi government’s latest surveillance move, slamming the Department of Telecom’s directive requiring every new mobile handset sold in India to come pre-installed with the Sanchar Saathi app within the next 90 days. Branding it a “sinister snooping weapon masquerading as a fraud-protection tool,” Kharge warned that the order represents the most brazen invasion of personal privacy since the Pegasus scandal and signals the death knell for democratic freedoms.

In a series of explosive posts on X, the veteran leader accused the Centre of bulldozing democratic norms by issuing the mandate without a single consultation with opposition parties, state governments, civil society, handset manufacturers, or citizens themselves. “Why is the Modi government so desperate to know what every Indian discusses with family and friends? This unilateral imposition is nothing short of dictatorship,” Kharge thundered, charging that the app’s forced pre-loading turns every new phone into a potential government listening post.

Drawing a chilling timeline of erosion, Kharge linked the move to a pattern of authoritarian overreach: from ruthless amendments to Income Tax laws that turned digital transactions into a permanent audit trail, to the deliberate strangulation of RTI through the DPDP Act 2023, and the infamous Pegasus spyware attack that compromised phones of over 100 prominent Indians including opposition leaders, senior judges, journalists, activists, and even serving Union ministers. “Snooping, scanning, surveilling, and confiscating citizens’ rights has become the defining hallmark of this tyrannical regime,” he declared.

Also Read: Kharge Hits Back, Calls PM Modi “Biggest Dramabaaz” After PM’s Lecture to Opposition

The Congress chief pointedly reminded the nation that the same Modi government had fiercely opposed the Supreme Court’s landmark 2017 verdict recognising privacy as a fundamental right, arguing in court that no such right existed under the Constitution. “Today they are proving why they fought that battle—because absolute control over citizens’ lives is their ultimate goal. When privacy dies, democracy perishes and a dystopian era flourishes,” Kharge warned, vowing that the opposition will not rest until the “dangerous directive” is revoked.

Echoing the outrage, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra amplified the attack, labelling Sanchar Saathi a “digital handcuff” on every Indian. With Parliament in session and public anger mounting, the Congress has signalled an all-out offensive both on the streets and inside the House, demanding immediate rollback, a white paper on the app’s capabilities, and a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the government’s escalating surveillance architecture. The battle over India’s phones has just begun.

Also Read: Bihar Congress Post-Poll Review Turns Turbulent as Leaders Allege Ticket Sales