On June 16, the Indian government temporarily blocked Telegram, citing its use in cheating on the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical colleges. The block order is effective until June 22. The National Testing Agency (NTA), which administers the exam, stated that the move was a response to “organized cheating syndicates using the platform to defraud candidates taking the NEET 2026 supplementary exam on June 21.” Reports indicated that unnamed channels on the platform were offering to sell test papers. India invoked the IT law provision for safeguarding “national sovereignty and integrity” to impose the block. The Indian government also directed Alphabet-owned Google and Apple to temporarily remove Telegram from their respective app stores, with sources at both companies confirming they would comply. Telegram did not immediately respond to a request for comment; the app remained accessible in India at the time the block order was issued.
This is India’s first ever temporary ban on Telegram. It follows last month’s cancellation of the NEET undergraduate exam due to a paper leak, which voided the results of over 2.3 million students and sparked mass protests across India, including demonstrations calling for the resignation of the education minister. The Internet Freedom Foundation, an Indian digital rights group, criticized the move as a “knee-jerk reaction” and a “disproportionate response” to the exam cheating issue, arguing that it “penalizes ordinary users rather than addressing the systemic roots of paper leaks.” The government described it as a “last resort,” stating that previous efforts to get the platform to remove related content had been unsuccessful.