The Supreme Court's Registrar Court ruled that serving a party with a notice over the instant messaging app WhatsApp is invalid.

"As per affidavit of dasti service, the notice is served on the sole respondent through ‘whatsapp’, which is not a valid mode of service as per (Supreme Court) rules," When directing new notice in a transfer petition at the admission stage, Registrar Pavanesh D said. 

The development becomes relevance in light of the fact that numerous High Courts now allow notifications to be served electronically, even via WhatsApp. 

Justice GS Patel of the Bombay High Court approved service of notice in an execution application using WhatsApp in SBI Cards & Payments Services Pvt Ltd v. Rohidas Jadhav (2018). It was discovered that the PDF attachment of the notification that had been served had been opened in addition to being received.

"For the purposes of service of Notice under Order XXI Rule 22, I will accept this. I do so because the icon indicators clearly show that not only was the message and its attachment delivered to the Respondent’s number but that both were opened,” stated Justice Patel. 

In the case of Kross Television India Pvt. Ltd. v. Vikhyat Chitra Production (2017), Justice Patel had previously established a precedent in April 2017, holding that - “Indian Judiciary system is flexible enough to consider a notice issued through ‘WhatsApp’ or through email admissible in the court of law. It is not necessary for the plaintiff to go through extreme measures like that of a bailiff or through the ‘beat of a drum’ for the notice to be considered as properly served. The defendants were duly notified in the eyes of the court.”

A municipal court in Delhi, however, rejected electronic service via WhatsApp, claiming that the Delhi High Court had not established any guidelines allowing the complainant to serve the accused in a complaint case via electronic means."There is no facility available with the court system to effect service through electronic mode," It had stated this in a January 2017 order. 

The Delhi High Court's Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw soon after permitted the plaintiff in a defamation case to serve the summons on one of the defendants by Whatsapp, text message, and email in order dated April 27, 2017 in Tata Sons Limited & Ors v. John Doe. 

When dealing with a runaway couple in Monika Rani & Anr. v. State of Haryana & Ors. in 2019, the Punjab-Haryana High Court allowed the girl's father to receive a copy of the FDRs in her favour via "WhatsApp message."

The COVID-19 epidemic and a nationwide lockdown made it difficult to physically serve summonses, thus the Supreme Court approved the distribution of notifications, summonses, and other documents via WhatsApp in addition to email in July 2020. It stated,

"Service of notices, summons and pleadings etc. have not been possible during the period of lockdown because this involves visits to post offices, courier companies or physical delivery of notices, summons and pleadings. We, therefore, consider it appropriate to direct that such services of all the above may be effected by e-mail, FAX, commonly used instant messaging services, such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal etc. However, if a party intends to effect service by means of said instant messaging services, we direct that in addition thereto, the party must also effect service of the same document/documents by e-mail, simultaneously on the same date".