NEW DELHI — India issued a temporary nationwide ban on the messaging platform Telegram until June 22 and ordered Telegram to disable its message-editing feature in the country until June 30. Both measures were implemented to prevent cheating in the re-examination of the National Eligibility Entrance Test (Undergraduate), scheduled for June 21.

The National Testing Agency, which administers the medical college entrance exam, stated that the message-editing feature has been used to fabricate evidence of exam paper leaks after tests are conducted. The agency said, "Both measures have been taken in the interest of public order, in response to the organized use of the platform by cheating rackets to defraud candidates appearing for the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination." Director General of the National Testing Agency Abhishek Singh also said that limiting platform access reduces the pool of potential victims. He added, "Even though they can continue operating the channels, if there is no clientele, the fraud will be prevented, and the students will be protected."

The Internet Freedom Foundation, a digital rights advocacy group, said, "Shutting down Telegram is a band aid solution and a disproportionate answer to exam fraud." The foundation also stated, "The block of Telegram is reactive and ineffective and will punish ordinary users instead of addressing the systemic source of exam leaks." Telegram CEO Pavel Durov said, "This punishes 150 million ordinary Telegram users in India, not the insiders who leaked the exam materials." Durov also stated, "The leaks just moved to other apps."

The original exam, taken by approximately 2.28 million candidates, occurred on May 3. The agency canceled this exam on May 12 following complaints of irregularities. The Central Bureau of Investigation is investigating allegations surrounding the paper leak, and authorities have arrested more than a dozen individuals in connection with the investigation. The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre removed multiple Telegram channels, groups, and bots that advertised fraudulent exam materials. Telegram has also removed hundreds of channels linked to leaked exam materials and related scams in India in recent weeks and made its message edited label more prominent to help prevent backdating scams.