Delhi HC questions restrictions on Telegram app ahead of NEET re-test

The Union Government on Thursday defended its decision to restrict Telegram app ahead of the NEET re-examination on June 21, saying it is “most preferred” for terror acts, cyber crimes and extremist propaganda as the social media’s unique bot infrastructure allows information to be disseminated in bulk, enabling creation of sophisticated networks with minimal human oversight. It also makes it difficult for law enforcement agencies to detect any wrongdoing.

Justifying the temporary ban on Telegram, Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta also said in the Delhi High Court that a single Telegram user can create up to 40 bots, which can in turn multiply and form extensive automated networks. He said this feature is not present in the same way on other social media messaging networks.

The Delhi High Court, meanwhile, asked how the rights of 150 million Telegram users could be curtailed because one set of people were appearing for an examination. The court’s remarks came as it heard Telegram’s plea against the Government’s decision to restrict the platform ahead of the NEET re-examination scheduled for June 21.

“How can we stop the rights of 150 million people just because one set of citizens are appearing in examinations?” a bench led by Justice Tejas Karia asked as counsels for both Telegram and the Government of India presented their arguments.

The SG said a large number of groups and channels were operating on Telegram and that the court may never have heard of channels functioning in such a manner on other platforms.

The Government alleged that Telegram has evolved into a key platform for a wide range of illegal activities, including cyber-attacks, purchase and sale of mule and rented bank accounts, operation of transnational cybercrimc syndicates, malware distribution, data exfiltration, command-and-control (C2) infrastructure, circulation of violent and extremist content, dissemination of pirated content, circulation of Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM), creation and operation of anonymous accounts through virtual phone numbers, and circulation of leaked examination papers.

“Telegram has become the new dark web, linking threat actors. Criminals have rapidly adopted Telegram to post links on channels that connect to dark web forums through deep web links, making it hard for authorities to track and attribute criminals,” the Centre said. “For example, Telegram’s own verified ‘ISIS Watch’ channel establishes the problem that the Petitioners deny.

Delhi HC questions restrictions on Telegram app ahead of NEET re-test

That Telegram’s own disclosures further indicate that approximately 16,578 terrorist communities were banned during the first 15 days of June 2026 alone.

The channel records daily mass bans in June 2026 alone: 1,086 terrorist bots and channels on June 10, 130 on June 11, 1,843 on June 12, 575 on June 13, 30 on June 14, 603 on June 15, and 775 on Jun 16e, taking the month’s total to 17,353 entities in just 16 days. The extraordinarily high volume of such removals demonstrates the scale at which unlawful communities are created and continue to operate on the platform before being detected and removed. This is not a one-time abuse; it is continuous abuse by design. Even for terrorist content, which Telegram places its highest moderation priority on, the platform admits that banned bots and channels reappear every day despite prior measures being established in the NEET case,” the Government said in its affidavit.

The affidavit states that Telegram’s privacy and anonymity features have made it particularly attractive to criminal networks. According to the Centre, users can conceal identifiers such as phone numbers and Telegram IDs through privacy settings, making it difficult for investigators to establish the real identities behind accounts.

Citing a report of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), the affidavit said that the app had become a preferred platform for cybercriminals, who use fake accounts, concealed identities, channels and groups to carry out unlawful activities, including financial frauds, malware distribution, data breaches and circulation of leaked papers. “Telegram is being exploited for illegal activities, including drug trafficking, cybercrime, extremism, terrorism, child exploitation, and cyber scams and frauds, primarily due to privacy features,” the affidavit said.

While reserving judgment, the judge asked counsel for both parties to file any written submissions by 7 pm. When the law officer spoke about the paper leak and the app’s probable role in it, Justice Karia further said, “We are all alive to the situation (of paper leak). So many students were affected. But the aspect on the curb... can you ban the whole app? Let us focus on that. There is a power. That power can be exercised. To what extent can it be exercised? The question here is, can you block someone else’s right to protect somebody else?” the bench asked.

The bench also asked: once the paper is leaked and goes viral, how can you deal with it in real time? And once a complaint is received, by the time action is taken, damage is done. “What real-time surveillance is there on your platform?” the bench asked before reserving the order.

On May 12, the National Testing Agency (NTA) had cancelled the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET-UG, held on May 3 for medical admissions amid allegations of paper leak. The matter is currently under investigation by the CBI.