The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the Survey of India (SoI) have directed Google to remove the Chinese app ‘Ablo’ from its Play Store due to its faulty depiction of India’s territorial borders. The app has over 10,000 downloads and inaccurately represents Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, omitting Lakshadweep Island entirely.
The notice references the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 1990, which penalizes such inaccuracies, with penalties including imprisonment and fines. MeitY stressed the importance of accurate boundary representation for national sovereignty and invoked Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act, 2000, to ensure prompt action.
Google has begun compliance, removing the app from both Play and Apple’s stores for Indian users.
