New Delhi, June 16: The government has imposed a temporary ban on the messaging app Telegram until June 22, following recommendations from the National Testing Agency (NTA). This action aims to prevent exam-related fraud across India. As a result of the government’s directive, Telegram is no longer available on the Google Play Store, making it impossible to download the app from this platform.
This decision comes ahead of the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination scheduled for June 21, which has been marred by allegations of paper leaks, misinformation, and cheating networks.
According to a statement from the NTA, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued an order under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, restricting the use of Telegram in India until June 22. This ban will remain in effect on the exam day and immediately thereafter.
Additionally, Telegram has been instructed to disable its message editing feature in India until June 30.
The NTA stated that these measures are intended to maintain public order and curb organized fraud rings that have reportedly exploited this platform to deceive candidates sitting for the re-examination. The agency expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology for timely intervention to ensure a fair and secure examination process.
The agency also highlighted the role of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), which operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs. This center has coordinated efforts against Telegram-based fraud and misinformation targeting NEET candidates.
The NTA alleged that several Telegram channels operating under names like ‘Leaked NEET Papers’, ‘Re-NEET 2026’, and ‘Private Mafia’ were demanding amounts ranging from a few thousand to several lakhs of rupees in exchange for access to exam question papers. The NTA reiterated that no exam papers have been leaked and warned that all claims of advance access to question papers are fraudulent.
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