As the CJP’s protest at Jantar Mantar drew thousands of students from across the country, one of the biggest challenges was not finding people, but staying connected.

With mobile networks slowing under heavy traffic, intermittent Internet disruptions, and large parts of central Delhi under tight security, many protesters turned to an unusual solution - an app that works without Internet.

The application, BitChat, allows smartphones to communicate directly with one another instead of relying on mobile data or Wi-Fi. Using Bluetooth and peer-to-peer Wi-Fi, every phone acts as a relay point, creating what is known as a mesh network.

As more users join, messages can hop from one device to another, allowing communication to continue even when conventional networks are congested or unavailable.

The technology is not new. It gained international attention during the 2014 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, where hundreds of thousands downloaded the app after mobile networks became overloaded. Protesters used it to coordinate movements, share updates and stay in touch without relying on Internet connectivity.

The same principle has now found relevance in Delhi. With Metro stations closed, roads barricaded and protesters dispersed across central parts of the city, offline messaging has emerged as a practical way for demonstrators to coordinate.

Protesters, speaking to The Tribune, said the app helps them locate fellow mates, share information about medical assistance and legal aid, evade crackdown by forces and communicate movement plans when mobile networks become unreliable.

Unlike conventional messaging platforms such as WhatsApp or Telegram, BitChat does not require users to be connected to the Internet. Instead, communication depends on the number of nearby users running the application. The denser the crowd, the stronger the network becomes, making large public gatherings particularly suited to mesh networking.

However, the technology also has its limitations. Messages sent through public chat rooms can be viewed by anyone connected to the same network, raising concerns about privacy and surveillance. Security experts have long cautioned that while mesh networking offers resilience during communication blackouts, users should remain aware that public conversations may be accessible to others unless additional encryption is used.