The central government on Wednesday said pre-installation of Sanchar Saathi on mobile phones is not mandatory, blinking on a debate that has been raging ever since news broke of the Department of Telecommunications’ diktat to smartphone makers to pre-install the app on all devices.

The government has issued a fresh notification changing the earlier direction, it was reported on Wednesday.

Before the alert on the government decision was flashed by PTI, Union communications minister Jyotiraditya Scindia reiterated that Sanchar Saathi is not a surveillance tool but an unimpressed Opposition called the app the Pegasus for the common man.

Pegasus is an Israeli spyware. A case is pending in the Supreme Court that will decide whether there must be an investigation into the Narendra Modi government’s alleged use of the spyware on journalists, activists and public officials including Opposition leaders.

In the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, Scindia repeated what he had said on Tuesday after a Reuters report revealed that the Department of Telecommunications had ordered that all smartphones in India must have the Sanchar Saathi pre-installed.

“Sanchar Saathi app se na snooping sambhav hai, no snooping hoga, [Neither is snooping possible nor will it happen through Sanchar Saathi,” Scindia said said in response to Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda’s question.

He added that the ministry is open to reviewing and modifying its order on mandatory installation based on public feedback.

He did not dwell on how the government could push an app through without consent or without inviting feedback first.

Asserting that the app is meant “for the protection of people”, the minister stressed that consumers would retain choice.

“If a consumer has not been registered on the app, then the app will not be operational and one can also delete the app,” he maintained.

According to Scindia, the app has already seen around 1.5 crore downloads and has proven effective for user safety.

With the app and the associated portal, he said, “26 lakh stolen handsets have been traced, 7 lakh stolen handsets have been returned to the consumers, 41 lakh mobile connections have been disconnected and 6 lakh frauds have been blocked.”

Congress leader Pawan Khera questioned Scindia’s claim that users can delete the app, arguing that government orders contradict verbal assurances. “They say something, they write something else and do something else altogether,” Khera declared.

He said mandatory installation of the app “raises serious concerns” and accused the ministry of misusing “safety” as an excuse.

Addressing a press conference, Khera said: “What Pegasus was to VIPs of the country, Sanchar Saathi app is to common man; objective being spying on citizens.”

The controversy escalated after a government order dated 28 November surfaced. The directive mandated all mobile phone manufacturers to pre-install the Sanchar Saathi app on every new handset sold in India, and to push it to existing devices through software updates.

The order also instructed companies to ensure the app is “readily visible and accessible” to users at first setup and that its features “are not disabled or restricted.”

The order gave manufacturers 90 days to comply.

It triggered widespread outcry from political parties and social media users, who warned that the app could potentially read users’ messages or facilitate government surveillance.