Messaging platform Telegram on Wednesday moved the Delhi High Court, challenging the temporary restrictions imposed on the app ahead of the NEET UG re-examination scheduled for June 21.
The Center had ordered a temporary suspension of Telegram services in India until June 22, a move welcomed by the National Testing Agency (NTA), which said the restrictions were aimed at curbing fraud and misinformation targeting exam aspirants.
The matter has been listed before Justice Tajas Karia and is expected to be heard later in the day.
The legal challenge comes after the NTA claimed to have uncovered a large network of scammers operating through Telegram channels. According to the agency, fraudsters were allegedly charging students amounts ranging from ₹14,000 to ₹25,000 and, in some cases, as much as ₹10 lakh by falsely promising access to leaked NEET re-examination papers.
Details of the restriction order
In a statement, the NTA said the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had directed temporary restrictions on Telegram across India until June 22, covering both the examination period and the days immediately following it.
The ministry also instructed the platform to disable its message-editing feature in India until June 30.
According to the NTA, the measures were introduced to disrupt organized cheating networks that were allegedly using Telegram to spread false claims about access to examination papers. The agency added that disabling message editing would help prevent the creation of fake paper leak evidence, where users could alter older messages while retaining their original timestamps.
While acknowledging that the restrictions would inconvenience legitimate Telegram users, the NTA maintained that the measures were temporary and necessary to safeguard the integrity of NEET UG. The examination, originally conducted on May 3, was later canceled amid allegations of paper leaks and other irregularities.
Pavel Durov criticizes the decision
Meanwhile, Telegram founder Pavel Durov criticized the temporary ban, arguing that it unfairly affected millions of ordinary users.
“India’s IT ministry banned Telegram for one week because some users shared leaked exam questions. This punishes more than 150 million regular Telegram users in India, not the individuals responsible for leaking exam material. The ban also has not stopped the leaks, which have simply shifted to other platforms,” Durov said in a post on X.
NTA Director General Abhishek Singh defended the government’s action, stating that the restrictions would prevent students from accessing fraudulent channels.
He noted that while some operators might continue running channels through VPNs or from outside India, students within the country would no longer be able to access them easily.
“Some channels may continue operating from outside India or through VPNs, but if students cannot reach them, the fraud ecosystem loses its audience. This helps protect candidates from losing money and wasting time on fake question papers,” Singh said.
