Apple removes Jack Dorsey’s Bitchat from India App Store after MeitY order

Apple has removed Bitchat, the offline messaging app backed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, from its India App Store following a demand from the Union government.

Dorsey posted an image of an Apple App Review notice on X on Saturday and wrote that the Indian government had “officially” removed Bitchat from the App Store.

The notice says Apple was removing the application from the India App Store following a demand from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. It states that the app included content considered illegal in India and did not comply with Apple’s legal requirements for applications.

According to the notice, MeitY issued the takedown demand under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The provision empowers the government to direct intermediaries to block public access to information on specified grounds.

The notice does not identify the content considered illegal or explain the specific ground invoked under Section 69A. It directs the developer to contact MeitY for further information.

Apple’s live catalogue returned no result for Bitchat’s application identifier in India on Saturday. The same identifier continued to return the Bitchat listing in the United States, confirming that the removal was limited by territory at the time of checking.

Apple also told the developer that Bitchat would remain available in other selected territories. Its TestFlight version would be unavailable for internal and external testing in India, and public TestFlight links would no longer function in the country, the notice said.

Bitchat allows nearby users to exchange messages through a Bluetooth mesh network without mobile data, Wi-Fi infrastructure, phone numbers or email addresses. Its US App Store listing describes encrypted private messages and the ability to relay messages across nearby devices.

The app had faced government action earlier. In July, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre ordered GitHub to restrict access in India to repositories hosting Bitchat, according to reports by The Economic Times, MediaNama and TechCrunch.

The Economic Times reported that the earlier order cited concerns that the app could be misused by criminal and terrorist groups and could impede lawful interception and investigations. MediaNama reported that takedown notices were also sent concerning the mesh messaging apps Briar and Bridgefy.

The latest removal closes another distribution route for Bitchat in India after the earlier action against its source code repositories. The application remained available through Apple’s US store when checked on Saturday.

The Pioneer has sought a response from MeitY and Apple on the precise content cited in the order and whether similar directions were issued to other app stores. Their responses were awaited at the time of publication.