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Telegram CEO Pavel Durov on Tuesday criticised India's temporary restriction on the messaging platform ahead of the NEET-UG test, claiming it unfairly affects millions of users.
He claimed that India's IT ministry banned Telegram for one week because "some users shared leaked exam questions" and that "leaks have moved to other apps". "India's IT ministry banned Telegram for one week because some users shared leaked exam questions. This punishes 150M+ ordinary Telegram users in India -- not the insiders who leaked the exam materials. And the ban hasn't stopped anything. The leaks just moved to other apps," he said in a post on X, reacting to the Internet Freedom Foundation press release. The National Testing Agency will conduct the rescheduled NEET-UG exam on June 21. https://x.com/durov/status/2066879467054649639 The Internet Freedom Foundation release objected to the directions announced today in the National Testing Agency's statement on action concerning the Telegram platform. "On the NTA's recommendation, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has, under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, restricted access to the whole of Telegram in India until 22 June 2026, and has separately ordered the platform to switch off message-editing for every Indian user until 30 June 2026...," the press release said. It also said that Section 69A and the Blocking Rules of 2009 framed under it allow the Government to block access to specific 'information' on a computer resource. "They do not extend to switching off an entire intermediary, still less to ordering a company to redesign its product by removing a feature for a whole country...For the message-editing direction the release identifies no source of power at all. If one exists, the order must say so," the release said. It said the "block of telegram is reactive and ineffective and will punish ordinary users instead of addressing the systemic source of exam leaks". "This blocking comes in the final days of NEET preparation, when thousands of students depend on Telegram for study groups, doubt-clearing, and shared resources. Also, it is important to consider that the source of exam papers leak will occur from inside the system...," it added. The release alleged that "switching off Telegram, is merely a deflection from the repeated failures that will continue while media attention is directed towards this Telegram ban". It urged the government to publish the MeitY Section 69A order and the NTA recommendation behind it, with reasons and state the legal basis for the message editing direction, or withdraw it". It asked if "Telegram was given a hearing under the Blocking Rules, and place the committee's record before any court that hears a challenge". The release called for lifting "the platform-wide restriction". (ANI)
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