China accuses India of repeatedly using national security as an excuse to ban Apps, warns against further damaging ties
DHARAMSALA, 28 Jan: China has yet again called India’s decision to ban Chinese mobile Apps discriminatory and warned India against causing further damage to the bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
The Chinese embassy in New Delhi has labelled India’s decision to permanently ban 59 Chinese mobile apps as discriminatory measure and further accused India of repeatedly using national security as an excuse for taking action that violates WTO rules, reports the Times of India.
According to the report, the Chinese embassy has urged India to immediately correct its “discriminatory measures” and avoid causing further damage to bilateral cooperation.
China has since last year accused India of flouting the WTO rules while firmly opposing New Delhi’s ‘ decision to ban Chinese Apps and accused India of repeatedly using “national security” as an excuse to do so.
“These moves, in violation of WTO non-discriminatory principles and fair competition principles of market economy, severely damage the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies,” the Chinese embassy spokesperson Ji Rong was quoted as saying in the report.
India announced the ban of 59 Chinese mobile apps in June last year and later in September, it added 118 more apps were to the list under 69A of the Information Technology Act.
In total, India, the world’s second-largest internet market has now banned 267 Chinese mobile Apps in total. Taking a cue from India, the US followed suit and banned some Chinese Apps.
The Apps were banned by India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology by invoking section 69A of the Information Technology Act to safeguard the privacy of 130 crore Indians” as it held the malicious Chinese mobile apps “prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, the security of the state and public order.”
