India asks GitHub to block Jack Dorsey’s Bitchat app amid CJP protests, here’s why
The Indian government has reportedly asked GitHub to remove Jack Dorsey's Bitchat repositories, raising questions about offline messaging apps, internet shutdowns and digital privacy.
Published By: Shubham Arora
Published: Jul 25, 2026, 02:16 PM (IST)
Reports show that the Indian government has urged GitHub to remove all repositories connected with the Bitchat that was created by Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter. This comes at the time when Indian officials are investigating the recent protests organized by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) in New Delhi after getting news that some protestors were using Bluetooth messaging after cellular internet was cut off in some areas of the city.
The issue came into the spotlight after Dorsey shared screenshots of what appeared to be an official notice from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), which functions under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The notice directs GitHub to remove or disable access to three repositories hosting Bitchat, including the main project and its Android version.
Why the government wants Bitchat removed
According to the notice shared by Dorsey, the government believes Bitchat can be used to bypass internet shutdowns and make lawful interception more difficult because it works without mobile networks, internet connectivity or central servers.
The notice reportedly invokes Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act, 2000, along with Rule 3(1)(d) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. GitHub was reportedly asked to disable access to the repositories within three hours.
The document describes Bitchat as a decentralised peer-to-peer messaging platform that uses Bluetooth mesh technology to allow communication without relying on telecom networks or the internet. According to the notice, such platforms could be misused for coordinating unlawful gatherings, spreading misinformation, supporting criminal conspiracies and carrying out activities that may affect public order or national security. It also argues that the app's design makes tracing users and investigating communications significantly more difficult.
Was Bitchat used during the protests?
The notice surfaced while Delhi Police were examining whether offline messaging apps were used during the CJP protests after internet services were suspended in parts of central Delhi.
Authorities have not confirmed that Bitchat itself was used by protesters. According to TechCrunch, local media reports claimed that some protesters downloaded offline messaging apps such as Bitchat and Briar after internet restrictions were imposed.
Legal experts question the takedown request
The reported notice has also triggered a debate over whether the legal provisions mentioned in the order can be used to target an open-source software project instead of specific unlawful content.
According to TechCrunch, the Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) also questioned the effectiveness of such a move, saying removing a GitHub repository would not delete the app from devices where it is already installed or stop the Bluetooth mesh network from functioning. The group argued that the move would instead limit public access to the app's underlying source code.
GitHub did not confirm whether it had received the notice. The company directed queries to its public repository of government takedown requests, where no recent request related to Bitchat was listed. GitHub also said that when it receives a complete government takedown request, it notifies affected account owners and gives them an opportunity to appeal before publishing the request publicly.
What is Bitchat?
Dorsey introduced Bitchat last year as an open-source messaging app that works without mobile data, Wi-Fi, phone numbers or centralised servers. Instead, it relies on Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to create a mesh network, allowing nearby devices running the app to pass encrypted messages from one phone to another. As more devices join the network, messages can travel farther by hopping across multiple smartphones.
Unlike apps such as WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram, Bitchat does not require users to create an account or connect to the internet. While this makes it useful during internet outages or in places with poor connectivity, authorities say the same design can also make communications harder to trace.
According to data shared by market intelligence firm Sensor Tower with TechCrunch, interest in Bitchat has surged in India over the past week. India accounted for around 85% of the app's global downloads between July 17 and July 23, compared with about 1% during the previous 30 days. The app was downloaded more than 91,000 times in India over the past five days, while daily active users crossed 3,30,000, the highest level recorded in the country.
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