This archive report was first published on 30 June 2020.
On June 30, 2020, the Indian government banned 59 Chinese mobile apps, including TikTok, in a move that has strained relations between the two countries.
TikTok, owned by China's ByteDance, has denied sharing Indian users' data with the Chinese government, despite being owned by a Chinese company.
TikTok India chief Nikhil Gandhi stated, 'TikTok continues to comply with all data privacy and security requirements under Indian law and have not shared any information of our users in India with any foreign government, including the Chinese government.'
He added that if requested to do so in the future, TikTok would not share user data with the Chinese government.
The Indian government has accused the banned apps of being 'prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.'
The ban comes after a deadly border clash between Indian and Chinese troops in the Himalayas, which resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian soldiers.
India and China have a long history of strained relations, but have also built up strong economic ties in recent years, with annual bilateral trade worth $90 billion.
