India, one of Telegram’s largest markets with more than 150 million users, temporarily blocked the messaging app last week in an unusual sweeping move by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The government said the action was triggered by massive leaks and fraud rings trading in the national medical entrance exams, with organized crime groups using Telegram to sell exam papers to students.
India’s National Testing Agency said candidates and their families had been sold what were presented as leaked test questions through various channels. It canceled the exam scores and ordered a retest. The move sparked protests among young people, who accused the government of poor management of the examination system. Officials said the block was imposed under a strict section of India’s information technology law that allows action when the country’s sovereignty and integrity are threatened.
The government described the block as a last resort, saying earlier targeted efforts to remove only the pirated material from Telegram had failed. Although it was unclear whether India’s telecom companies and the app stores Apple and Google had begun enforcing the order, Telegram stopped working gradually from Sunday. Because of network configuration changes made to enforce the ban, users in other countries, including the United Arab Emirates, also reported severe disruptions.
Rights activists said the government often uses India’s tough technology laws to silence criticism and restrict free speech. Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov said on X that the block punished ordinary users rather than the people cheating exam takers, and said Telegram had removed hundreds of channels linked to exam materials and similar fraud in India. The article also noted that Telegram has faced restrictions in multiple countries, including full bans in China, Iran, Russia, Cuba, North Korea, Nepal and Somalia, as well as partial or temporary restrictions in places such as Ukraine, Brazil, Norway, Canada, the United States and France.
