India's I4C ordered GitHub to remove Bitchat, a P2P messaging app, for features preventing surveillance, not for an unlawful act. The author critically argues this misinterprets the IT Act, reversing privacy principles. He contends banning tools for potential misuse sets a dangerous precedent, comparing it to banning knives rather than prosecuting criminals. The author highlights the order's ineffectiveness due to Bitchat's open-source nature and predicts a “Streisand effect,” boosting the app's popularity. This action is deemed muddled thinking and a major “own goal” for Indian technology regulation.