Viral E-Rickshaw Pranks: MeitY Orders Removal of the Chinese Apps; Eeverything You Need To Know

From around July 2nd Thursday, videos began spreading across Instagram, YouTube, Reddit and X showing people walking up to random e-rickshaws, connecting to their batteries via Bluetooth using an app, and switching the vehicles off mid-ride, sometimes even turning them back on afterward for the camera. Some creators called it "Tirri Control," using a North Indian slang term for e-rickshaws. Poor Drivers were confused and unaware their vehicle had been tampered with the help of a remote were left stranded on busy roads.

BAT-BMS: The Chinese app responsible

The Chinese app responsible for this incident is called BAT-BMS. It is a companion smartphone app for Bluetooth-enabled lithium-ion batteries, developed by Chinese firm Shenzhen Grenergy Technology. It was built to allow battery owners monitor real-time parameters like voltage, current, temperature, charging cycles and overall battery health and, in some versions, manage discharge functions remotely. This kind of battery management system or BMS app is common in India's budget EV segment, where many low-cost e-rickshaws and electric two-wheelers run on Chinese-made batteries controlled via Bluetooth rather than a display panel.

The security flaw behind it & impact on drivers

The root cause is not that the apps are being hacked, the main problem is that there is itself so much weak security on the hardware side. Many budget e-rickshaw battery packs do not have password protection or continue running on factory-default credentials, meaning anyone within Bluetooth range roughly 10 to 15 metres can pair with the battery without the owner's knowledge and, in some cases, cut power remotely.

Government and police response

MeitY began examining the app's security after the videos went viral, including whether it could be blocked and whether it complied with Indian data and cybersecurity norms.

On July 3, 2026, MeitY directed the Google Play Store and Apple App Store to remove BAT-BMS.

Speaking at the CII Cybersecurity Summit the same day, MeitY Secretary S. Krishnan confirmed two apps, BAT-BMS and Epoch Li-ion had been taken down, saying: "There are a couple of apps which came to our notice yesterday, and both the apps have been taken down from the app stores. App stores need to exercise due care; we will take it up with them to see that possibly damaging apps don't come up."

The Delhi Transport Department launched its own investigation after the videos surfaced.