Meta (WhatsApp’s parent company) officially ended support for Android 4.4.2 on . That means:

Do not try to install newer versions (2.24 or higher). They are designed for Android 5.0+ and will either crash on launch or fail to install entirely.

For years, KitKat was a beloved, stable version of Android. However, as technology advanced, WhatsApp eventually dropped support for older operating systems to focus on newer security features and capabilities.