‘Lagaan must be stopped’: Anupam Mittal compares Google with ‘East India Company’ after action against Shaadi.com

A day after facing Google's action over fee payment dispute, Shaadi.com founder Anupam Mittal compared the tech giant with the new ‘Digital East India Company’.  Referring to the day on which Google removed multiple Indian mobile apps from Play Store as ‘dark day’, Mittal called for the urgent cessation of ‘Lagaan’ taken by Google in the name of service fee. The Alphabet-owned firm delisted a dozen of applications including Shaadi.com, Bharat Matrimony, etc over a dispute on service fee payments.

Expressing displeasure over Google's action against Indian firms, the Shark Tank India judge wrote, “Today is a dark day for India's Internet. Google has delisted major apps from its app store even though legal hearings are underway @CCI_India & @indSupremeCourt Their false narratives & audacity show they have little regard for 🇮🇳 Make no mistake - this is the new Digital East India Co. and this #Lagaan must be stopped!”

Indian apps return on Google Play Store 

Google has begun the restoration of multiple applications of Indian companies after the intervention of Union Minister of Electronics & IT, Ashwini Vaishnaw. The minister is likely to hold a meeting with Google officials on Monday, news agency ANI reported citing sources.

On Saturday, some Indian mobile applications that were taken down by Google over payment dispute, were reinstated on Play Store, including Shaadi.com, Naukri, 99acres, etc. However, these applications have returned to Play Store as consumption apps only without any in-app billing, Mittal clarified in his another post on X.

Google's action against Indian applications has received vehement criticism from startups and even the government. On Friday, Info Edge co-founder Sanjeev Bikchandani called for the intervention of India's antitrust regulator--the CCI -- to take action against Google's anti-competitive behaviour. He also highlighted for the need of the development of India's own ‘app store’ as part of Public Infrastructure.

“Indian companies will comply - for now. But what India needs is an App Store / Play Store that is a part of Digital Public Infrastructure - like UPI and ONDC. The response needs to be strategic @PiyushGoyal” Bikhchandani wrote on X.