According to Indian regulations, WhatsApp Web must log out users every six hours
New Delhi: Some innings start quietly. Virat Kohli’s innings on Sunday wasn’t like that.
As India lost a wicket early and Kohli came in to bat in the first ODI of the three-match series against South Africa, Ranchi didn’t just react—it erupted.
A wall of sound rumbled through the JSCA International Stadium, so loud it seemed the floodlights could shake. Fans jumped, arms raised, phones vibrated. They weren’t capturing a batsman coming in; they were capturing the arrival of a legend.
“Kohli! Kohli! Kohli!” The chants reverberated like shockwaves. A king had taken guard.
India suffered an early blow—opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed in the fourth over—but as soon as Kohli joined Rohit Sharma, the night changed. The Proteas weren’t just up against two batsmen; they were facing two big players who had decided the evening was theirs. Rohit brought elegance, Kohli intensity. Together, they rebuilt the innings, then dominated the bowling. Their 136-run partnership felt like a declaration etched into the Ranchi sky.
Rohit’s 57 runs were blazing, including the six that broke Shahid Afridi’s ODI sixes record before he departed. Ruturaj Gaikwad had barely made a run when Dewald Brevis leaped high into the air to take a breathtaking catch.
Supported by Washington Sundar and later by the quiet assurance of KL Rahul, Kohli played an innings that felt more like willow-wood storytelling than batting.
He pushed, punched, drove—and ruled.
His fifty shook the crowd. Then came the change. Kohli shifted gears, and the atmosphere in Ranchi felt heated.
When that moment arrived—his 52nd ODI century, his 83rd international century—the stadium didn’t just roar with joy. It was an explosion. It wasn’t a celebration; it was a coronation.
Kohli’s innings ended at 135 off 120 balls, with Ryan Rickelton taking a sharp catch running from cover. But by then the damage had been done. The atmosphere had rebuilt. The noise is always there.
India finished the match at 349/8, though the scorecard can never convey what happened in Ranchi.
The crowd didn’t just watch a match. They watched a king take back his rule. New Delhi, December 1: The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued a directive requiring messaging platforms, including WhatsApp, to log out users every six hours.
Last week’s directive required that the user’s Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) used at the time of registration be linked to the service of WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Arattai, Snapchat, Sharechat, and other web-based platforms.
Because the service must remain connected to the SIM card in the phone, WhatsApp Web and similar web apps will be required to log users out every six hours once the rule comes into effect.
The DoT circular states that within 90 days, users will no longer be able to access these apps unless the original SIM card is in the device. Each web-based platform will be required to submit a compliance report within four months.
This change will prevent the seamless multi-device experience that many people enjoy by keeping WhatsApp Web running throughout the working day. The government felt this step was necessary to prevent misuse of messaging apps, as cyber fraudsters, often from outside India, were exploiting WhatsApp without a SIM card.
Requiring SIM binding provides a way to trace activity back to the physical subscriber.
These rules derive from the Telecommunications Cybersecurity Amendment Rules, 2025, which introduced the idea of a Telecommunications Identifier User Entity.
These rules derive from the Telecommunications Cybersecurity Amendment Rules, 2025, which introduced the Telecommunications Identifier User Entity requirement. Under the changed rules, platforms will need access to the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) stored in the SIM, requiring global services like WhatsApp to re-engineer parts of their systems for Indian users.
Tech companies said that constant SIM checks and six-hour logouts would erode user privacy, disrupt multi-device functionality, and complicate access while traveling, while telecom operators supported the move.
