India gives WhatsApp 7 days to roll back new privacy policy: Report

India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on Wednesday has directed Facebook-owned messaging platform WhatsApp to take back its contentious new privacy policy, according to government sources quoted by ANI.

According to MeitY, deferral of the privacy policy beyond May 15, 2021, does not absolve WhatsApp from respecting the values of informational privacy, data security and user choice for Indian users, sources told ANI. MeitY has reportedly given WhatsApp seven days to reply to its notice. If WhatsApp’s response isn’t deemed satisfactory, the Indian government may take legal action against the Facebook-owned company.

The sources have maintained that WhatsApp meting out discriminatory treatment to Indian users compared to those in Europe is unacceptable.