According to a statement released by the Mobile Operators Association of India on Monday, carriers expect internet calling and messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Google Meet and Telegram to comply with the rules along with all other service providers.
COAI, whose members include Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, argued that the exclusion of over-the-top communication apps from the Telecommunications Act, 2023, is misleading.
According to COAI members, like telecom operators, these apps should also be subject to various non-sector regulations.
“COAI wishes to express that 'security of the nation' is of utmost importance and in this regard, all communication service providers including OTT based communication services must comply with the necessary directives of the country as telecom service providers are doing,” COAI Secretary General SP Kochhar said.
He said telecom operators have invested heavily in developing infrastructure for lawful interception and surveillance.
“However, despite these investments, unregulated application-based communications services completely bypass this equipment, posing a significant national security threat,” Kocher said.
He said the rapid expansion of OTT services and unbridled growth of communications platforms poses significant security threats and creates an uneven playing field between regulated, law-abiding and unregulated service providers.
Citing existing regulations such as the IT Act, 2000, the Indian Penal Code, 1860, the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 and the DPDP Act, 2023, Kochhar said some people have argued that OTT communication services should be exempted from the scope of the Telecommunications Act, 2023.
“This argument is completely misleading, as this requirement only pertains to the regulatory oversight of telecommunications services, which is expressly provided for in the Telecommunications Act, 2023. It is important to emphasize that TSPs regulated by the Telecommunications Act are also regulated by all the above laws provided for by Congress,” Kocher said.
Telecommunications companies have been calling on the government to provide a level playing field by applying the same rules to calling and messaging apps that apply to them.
(With inputs from PTI)