Will the bell ring for ‘cute’ Mohit with ` 251 smartphone? PROBLEMS APLENTY

A fledgling Indian company unveiled on Wednesday what is being billed as the world’s cheapest smartphone with the Android- run device priced at a jaw-dropping Rs251, but analysts raised some concerns about the product, including a possible copyright infringement of Apple’s iconic iPhone.

Noida-based Ringing Bells Pvt Ltd— set up just five months ago by Amity University graduate Mohit Kumar Goel who goes by “Cutemohit” on Facebook— launched the Freedom 251 at a high-profile function attended by veteran BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi.

Ringing Bells has called the phone “India’s most affordable smartphone” in full-page newspaper ads, pitching it as a huge push for the Narendra Modi government’s Make in India and Digital India initiatives.

But the launch in the Capital left many questions unanswered, including the absence of defence minister Manohar Parrikar who was expected to be the chief guest.

Also, hardly anything is known about the Goel family promoting Ringing Bells and Ashok Chaddha who was omnipresent on stage at the launch.

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