Why is WhatsApp threatening to leave India? Everything you need to know

In a dramatic twist nearly four years after its controversial policy changes, WhatsApp is back in the spotlight, this time with a bold ultimatum. The messaging giant, along with its parent company Meta, has thrown down the gauntlet, stating it will pull the plug on its services in India if pushed to compromise its end-to-end encryption and divulge user data to the government.

The showdown unfolded at the Delhi High Court, where WhatsApp and Meta filed a plea challenging India’s 2021 IT rules for social media intermediaries, particularly objecting to the requirement to identify the initial source of information.