India Might Ban Chinese Mobile Phone Imports

Note: At this moment, there are conflicting reports regarding this "ban". We have tried contacting the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and are yet to receive a confirmatory statement from them. The initial report was based on the reports that we received from Pocket-Lint and Global Telecoms Business. We will update this page as soon as we get a confirmation regarding this.

India's Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued a directive that calls for the banning of the import of mobile phones made by Chinese manufacturers. The move comes after the Indian Home Ministry expressed concerns regarding the proliferation of Chinese handsets in India. They were worried about the spyware and malware threat that these handsets posed. The ministry was also worried that these phones will offer intelligence agencies from China, access to telecom networks in India.
India has been facing "issues" with Chinese handsets for quite some time now. While it was the about all the unbranded, IMEI-less phones back in 2008-09, this time,  even reputed manufacturers are affected by the latest ban. If that wasn't all, the DoT has also asked Indian mobile operators to cancel orders from Chinese telecom equipment manufacturers. This has come at a time when Chinese made devices were becoming a rage in India. There are many Indian companies importing handsets from China and as of now, there is uncertainly if these handsets also come under the ban.
Interestingly, it will be manufacturers like Nokia, Sony Ericsson and the likes who would gain from this ban. However, these companies too have their manufacturing units in China. As of now, prima facie, it seems only Chinese companies will be affected by this blanket ban.