India's Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) has strongly condemned a government directive ordering GitHub to remove repositories associated with BitChat, the decentralized Bluetooth-based messaging app developed by Jack Dorsey. The digital rights organization described the move as unconstitutional and warned that it poses a serious threat to both free expression and the open-source software ecosystem.

The IFF's statement, posted on X on Friday, came in response to an order issued by India's cybercrime agency requiring GitHub to disable access to three BitChat repositories within a three-hour window. The agency justified the takedown by asserting that the decentralized messaging application could be used to circumvent internet shutdowns, evade lawful surveillance, and facilitate unlawful activities.

IFF contended that the order exceeded the government's lawful authority. The directive was issued under Section 79(3)(b) of India's Information Technology Act — a provision typically used to compel intermediaries to remove specific unlawful content — rather than through the country's established website-blocking framework under Section 69A of the IT Act, which includes procedural safeguards such as documented reasons and opportunities for review. The organization called on the government to withdraw the notice immediately and to publish all takedown orders that have been issued under Section 79(3)(b), citing a need for transparency and accountability.

The rights group further challenged the substantive basis for the order, noting that it failed to identify any specific unlawful content hosted in the repositories. Instead, the government's argument rested on the app's decentralized architecture itself. BitChat routes encrypted messages between nearby devices over Bluetooth connections, operating entirely without internet access or centralized servers — a design that the government characterized as inherently problematic.

BitChat was launched by Jack Dorsey in July 2025 as a peer-to-peer communication tool designed to function in environments where traditional internet infrastructure is unavailable or deliberately restricted. Since its release, the app has seen significant adoption during periods of civil unrest, natural disasters, and government-imposed internet shutdowns. Downloads have surged across multiple countries experiencing connectivity disruptions, including Madagascar, Nepal, Uganda, Jamaica, and Iran, where users have increasingly turned to decentralized communication platforms during crises.

India has frequently relied on internet shutdowns as a tool for maintaining public order, making it one of the countries most affected by network disruptions globally. That background gives the BitChat order broader significance: tools designed for offline or local communication can be useful during emergencies and shutdowns, but they also sit at the center of disputes over state authority, encryption, and access to information.

The case also raises broader questions about the application of India's IT Act to open-source software repositories, which serve as public code libraries rather than hosted services, and whether targeting source code constitutes a legitimate exercise of government regulatory power. For developers and civil liberties groups, the next point of scrutiny is whether authorities provide a clear legal basis and public record for such takedown demands, particularly when the order targets software infrastructure rather than specific posts, messages, or files alleged to be unlawful.

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