Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting China later this month to attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. These reports come amid a thaw in India-China relations lately and a relative chill in New Delhi’s ties with Washington due to the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on India.
Here are your questions answered:
Is TikTok accessible in India again?
TikTok’s website became partially accessible to some users in India, setting off speculation that it was back in the country. However, the mobile app remains unavailable on both the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Some users posted pictures showing the TikTok homepage, but its core functionalities, like logging in, creating accounts, or watching videos, are not available.
Have other Chinese apps or websites become functional in India?
There are similar reports and social media accounts about partial accessibility to the homepages of other Chinese platforms, including AliExpress and Shein. But, just like TikTok, these platforms also have limited or no actual engagement; users are unable to make any purchases on the platforms. These developments appear to be a technical glitch.
Why was TikTok (and other apps) banned in the first place?
On June 29, 2020, the Indian government banned TikTok and 58 other Chinese apps, including ShareIt, WeChat, AliExpress, and CamScanner, due to concerns over national security and data privacy. The ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) said these applications were “prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.” The ban came after geopolitical tensions between India and China following clashes in the Galwan Valley.
At the time of the ban, the country was the app’s largest international market, with about 200 million active users. India accounted for nearly half of all time spent on TikTok by users outside China. The app had also become the most downloaded in the country.
Why is the website accessible now if the ban hasn’t been lifted?
The accessibility seems to be a technical anomaly rather than the result of an official policy change. Government sources clarified that no unblocking order was issued. “Government of India has not issued any unblocking order for TikTok. Any such statement/news is false and misleading.”
Can Indian users create or access accounts on TikTok now?
No. Despite some homepages being visible, users in India cannot create new TikTok accounts, access content, or use the app.