The government on Monday extended its list of banned Chinese apps in India. 54 apps, including Sweet Selfie HD, Viva Video Editor, Tencent XRiver, AppLock and Dual Space Lite, can no longer be used. The popular game Garena Free Fire is also shown to be on the way out, although its developer is reportedly based in Singapore. These join a list of nearly 200 apps that, in the first three separate moves, soured relations after a border clash with Chinese troops in mid-2020.
The ever-increasing sanctions list suggests a Sisyphean challenge. After all, apps keep sprouting, some of which may be old apps trying to sneak into our smartphones in new forms. But how long will we be patrolling our virtual borders in a globalized world of app proliferation? Security concerns were cited for this policy, but Indian constraints seem too indiscriminate in the absence of information in the public domain on the specific threats posed by these apps. It is important for policy credibility that India’s stated cause is supported by intelligence findings. The time has come for clarity on what we are aiming to achieve. The center should conduct a survey and publish a discussion paper on Chinese apps.
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