Tech industry questions legal validity of SIM-binding order

Broadband India Forum, an industry body that represents major tech firms like Meta, Google, and others, has questioned the legal validity of the government’s SIM binding mandate, citing a senior counsel’s opinion that termed the direction as “ultra vires the parent legislation” and “unconstitutional”.

- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

In a letter dated February 23 to the Department of Telecom (DoT) secretary Amit Agrawal, BIF highlighted the legal opinion which concluded that the Telecommunications (Telecom Cyber Security) Amendment Rules, 2025, and recent directives regarding ‘SIM binding’ exceed the authority granted by the parent Telecommunications Act of 2023.

The matter pertains to a direction issued by the central government in November that will ensure app-based communication services, the likes of WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, and others, are continuously linked to a user’s active SIM card.