Telegram CEO Pavel Durov on Tuesday criticized the government’s temporary ban on the messaging app ahead of NEET-UG re-examination, saying it punishes ordinary users of the app.
He said the ban affects more than 150 million regular users in India and “punishes” them, not those who leaked the papers.
“India’s IT Ministry banned Telegram for a week because some users shared leaked exam questions. This penalizes over 150 million regular Telegram users in India – not the insiders who leaked the exam materials,” he said on X.
Durov added that the ban did not stop anything and that the leaks moved to different applications.
“And the ban didn’t stop anything. The leaks just moved to other applications.”
Also Read: Banning Telegram is a bad idea: CBSE OSM whistleblower Sarthak Sidhant points out NTA’s ‘incompetence’
Why was Telegram blocked?
With just a few days left for the NEET-UG re-examination on June 21, the National Testing Agency (NTA) has uncovered a large-scale fraud network operating on Telegram.
In a video message, NTA Director General Abhishek Singh detailed that the messaging app was running fraudulent strikers to target students.
First, some channels are demanding $14000 to $25,000, even up to 10 thousand, claiming that they will send the re-exam paper. The agency said these allegations were “incorrect.”
“There is no leaked paper for re-examination. The money was gone the moment you transferred it. Your admit card and WhatsApp number, if you send them, will become the tools they use to cheat the next student.”
Second, scammers will show fake “proof” videos showing pre-exam conversations. The testing agency explained the trick: “In Telegram, anyone running a channel can edit any old message and change what’s inside it, while the message history remains the same. So a message edited on the fourth day can be made to look exactly the same as it was sent on the first day.”
The NTA urged students and parents not to fall for similar scams that will be tried again after June 21. She also asked the students not to forward the message or pay anyone.
IIT Madras director V Kamakoti also explained how edited timestamps and reused letters can be used to fabricate “evidence” of paper leaks even where they do not exist.
Read also: Delhi court allows NEET leak accused to take re-test: ‘Right to education is fundamental’
The app is banned by Google and Apple will follow suit
The government has asked Google and Apple to remove the Telegram app from their app stores until June 22 to check paper leaks during the upcoming re-examination.
As of June 16 at 9pm, the app has been blocked on Android and is expected to be blocked on Apple devices.
Android phone users, while trying to download the Telegram app from the Google Play Store, receive a message, “This app is not available.” Those who have already downloaded the app may face restrictions while using it, PTI reported.
While the Apple App Store was offering the app, the new account could not be activated on iPhones.
The government is also in discussions with Telegram to temporarily disable the message editing feature until June 30, allowing existing users to edit their old messages as well as add any new content, PTI said, citing sources.
The Internet Freedom Foundation criticizes the ban
The International Freedom Foundation also criticized the temporary ban on the messaging app, saying it objected to the directives announced in the NTA’s press release regarding the action against the Telegram platform.
The institution described the ban as “crude” and “constitutionally incompatible.”
“Based on the recommendation of the NTA, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, has restricted access to Telegram entirely in India until June 22, 2026, and separately ordered the platform to turn off message editing for every Indian user until June 30, 2026.”
“This is an explicit nationwide measure aimed at combating rampant fraud, and by the government’s own admission is constitutionally incompatible,” she said in X.
She added that the ban is “an adjunct solution and a disproportionate response to exam fraud.”
The foundation added that under Section 69A and the 2009 blocking rules made under it, it allows the government to block only specific “information” on a computer resource.
“It does not extend to shutting down an entire medium, let alone ordering a company to redesign its product by removing a feature for an entire country,” she added.
The national exam is scheduled to be held again on June 21, after the government announced the cancellation of the previous exam held on May 3 amid allegations of paper leakage.
“We will not allow any mistake to happen. We will take all possible measures to ensure that the examination is conducted without any malpractice,” the NTA director told PTI.
