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Representatives of messaging app Telegram were called successful for meetings “at the highest levels” and warned astir the misuse of the app’s features that facilitate “paper leak frauds” earlier a broad prohibition was issued, Abhishek Singh, Director-General of the National Testing Agency (NTA), told The Hindu on Wednesday (June 17, 2026).
The Electronics and Information Technology Ministry blocked nationwide entree to Telegram until June 22. Additionally, it ordered Telegram to disable its message-editing diagnostic for each Indian users until June 30.
Mr. Singh said the superior motive down authorities involution is to halt the dispersed of engineered fake leaks that tin dispersed panic among the students up of the National Entrance Cum Eligibility Test (NEET) re-exam scheduled connected June 21.
“The authorities had antecedently approached Telegram regarding the misuse of 2 circumstantial features, including making edited timestamps disposable successful Telegram groups and addressing the contented of deficiency of stringent naming filters for its groups. However, Telegram did not change its strategy then,” Mr. Singh said.
NTA was acrophobic astir the modus operandi utilized by atrocious actors connected Telegram to trigger wide panic by fabricating grounds of question insubstantial leaks. Cheating syndicates person been systematically exploiting a circumstantial loophole successful Telegram’s radical and transmission synchronisation features.
For instance, a atrocious histrion tin make a nationalist Telegram transmission and nexus it to an associated group. Days earlier an exam, the head tin upload a random PDF record connected the channel, sanction it provocatively specified arsenic “NEET Question Paper Leaked”. The time aft the existent exam, the relation past tin usage Telegram’s edit diagnostic to regenerate the dummy PDF with the existent question paper. While the station wrong the transmission shows an ‘edited’ tag, the linked radical retains the timestamp of the archetypal station made days earlier. This creates a highly convincing illusion that the existent question insubstantial was disposable connected the level earlier the exam began, sparking panic.
“After the ban, Telegram laminitis Pavel Durov said on X that they are making the ‘edited’ statement much disposable to forestall backdating scams. However, this alteration is inactive not disposable connected the app,” Mr. Singh said. “Why can’t Telegram simply hole its metadata truthful that timestamp changes are accurately reflected successful linked radical chats,” helium asked.
Pointing retired that Telegram allows instauration of alleged transgression groups with questionable names specified arsenic “Paper Leak NEET Mafia”, Mr. Singh said the app has to “adhere to norms”.
The NTA Director-General argued that the deficiency of stringent naming filters and the quality to rapidly obscure subordinate identities person turned the level into a hub for assorted alleged amerciable activities, ranging from insubstantial leaks to concern fraud. On June 15, The Hindu had reported that Ahmedabad Police Cyber Cell had busted a fake NEET insubstantial leak claims racket which utilized Telegram.
Integrity vs liberty
The determination to prohibition Telegram has evoked a statement among authorities authorities, method experts, and ineligible analysts implicit introspection integrity versus integer liberties.
Manindra Agarwal, Director, IIT-Kanpur, said that due to the fact that NEET exam papers person been leaked, NTA’s motive is to halt the dispersed of fake news. “Telegram is simply a fashionable app, but it should besides enactment successful a liable mode particularly if it has been requested to tweak definite features,” Mr. Agarwal said.
However, cybersecurity and argumentation experts person raised reddish flags implicit taking an absolutist attack against the platform.
Nisarga Adhikary, a cybersecurity researcher astatine IIT-K, warned that a broad prohibition oregon heavy-handed regularisation “optimises for visibility alternatively than existent hazard reduction”.
“Telegram is comparatively mainstream and astatine slightest has identifiable infrastructure, ineligible points of contact, and a ample magnitude of nationalist activity,” Mr. Adhikary said. “If determined actors are forced disconnected it, they bash not disappear. They migrate to platforms with stronger anonymity properties... pushing adversaries into darker corners of the ecosystem whitethorn simply trim visibility into it.”
Mr. Adhikary besides pointed retired the method impracticality of demanding contiguous bundle overhauls, stating it is not casual for Telegram to change integral functions specified arsenic editing oregon archiving connected abbreviated notice. He noted that the existent edit timestamps are saved connected Telegram’s servers and could perchance beryllium accessed by instrumentality enforcement done modular ineligible notices.
Legal experts suggest that a narrow, feature-specific regularisation — alternatively than a broad prohibition — mightiness basal scrutiny. Monalisa Nanda, squad manager astatine the Centre for Law, Policy and Governance, suggested that a temporary, feature-specific regularisation connected Telegram during a constrictive exam model satisfies the ineligible benchmarks established by the Supreme Court.
“A surgical regularisation targeting lone the message-editing relation during exam windows would support nationalist involvement portion keeping the broader level functional for regular users,” said Ms. Nanda.
The Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF), successful a statement, argued that the government’s prohibition connected Telegram is simply a band-aid solution and a disproportionate reply to exam fraud. “At the outset, it is important to enactment that Section 69A and the Blocking Rules of 2009 framed nether it let the authorities to artifact entree to circumstantial “information” connected a machine resource. They bash not widen to switching disconnected an full intermediary, inactive little to ordering a institution to redesign its merchandise by removing a diagnostic for a full country,” the IFF said.
IFF argued that the prohibition of Telegram is reactive and ineffective and volition punish mean users alternatively of addressing the systemic root of exam leaks. “This blocking comes successful the last days of NEET preparation, erstwhile thousands of students beryllium connected Telegram for survey groups, doubt-clearing, and shared resources. Also, it is important to see that the root of exam papers leak volition hap from wrong the system, among insiders and crossed the printing and logistics chain, with the level being the astir downstream transmission for distribution. Hence, switching disconnected Telegram, is simply a deflection from the repeated failures that volition proceed portion media attraction is directed towards this Telegram ban,” it added.
IFF demanded that the government’s bid and the NTA’s proposal down the prohibition beryllium made nationalist with reasons. “The authorities should authorities the ineligible ground for the connection editing direction, oregon retreat it; it should corroborate whether Telegram was fixed a proceeding nether the Blocking Rules, and spot the committee’s grounds earlier immoderate tribunal that hears a challenge; and it should assistance the platform-wide regularisation and trust connected the targeted takedowns the NTA itself credits with containing the harm,” the connection said.
