Telegram Ban: Temporary ban on Telegram will not be lifted; High Court rules the government has the authority to impose the ban..

Telegram Ban: The Delhi High Court has dismissed Telegram's petition just ahead of the NEET (UG) re-examination. The Court clarified that the government possesses the full legal authority to take emergency measures and impose temporary bans to ensure the security of such a massive national examination. Consequently, Telegram will remain blocked across India until June 22.

High Court Upholds Government's Decision
On Friday, a single-judge bench of the Delhi High Court, presided over by Justice Tejas Karia, delivered a significant verdict dismissing Telegram's petition. The Court stated that after considering all arguments, it found that given the emergency nature of the contested orders, the authorities had strictly adhered to due process.

The Court clarified that the government's decision fully satisfies the test of proportionality. This measure is justified given the circumstances surrounding the nationwide medical entrance exam; it serves a legitimate objective, and the government adopted the least restrictive measure possible to bring the situation under control.

Telegram's Features Pose a Headache for Security Agencies
The Central Government made several startling revelations in court regarding Telegram's technical infrastructure (architecture). Citing reports from the Indian Cyber ​​Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), the government explained that certain features of Telegram have become major challenges for law enforcement agencies. These are detailed below:

Anonymity and Cloud Architecture: The app's user anonymity features and its cloud-based infrastructure hinder investigations.

Large Channels and Automated Bots: Its automated bots and message-forwarding mechanisms were being blatantly misused for exam-related scams and paper leaks.

New Groups Created in Minutes: According to the government, deleting specific illegal content or channels proved ineffective, as the 'cheating mafia' would simply set up new channels and bots within minutes. **Reach of the Cheating Mafia Extended to 1.46 Lakh Accounts**
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) took this step based on the recommendation of the National Testing Agency (NTA). The government informed the court that the Telegram channels, groups, and bots identified for selling fake NEET question papers had reached approximately 1.46 lakh accounts.
The government stated that an emergency blocking order was issued only after exhausting all other options, as repeated requests to remove the content had proven ineffective.

**A Matter Concerning the Future of 22 Lakh Students**
Serious allegations of a question paper leak arose regarding the NEET-UG exam held on May 3; consequently, a re-examination is scheduled for June 21 for over 22 lakh candidates.
The government argued that imposing a temporary ban on the entire platform was crucial to maintaining the integrity and fairness of the examination.

**Why Did Telegram Not Get Relief?**
Telegram contended that the temporary suspension of its services nationwide until June 22, along with the disabling of the message-editing feature until June 30, was an excessively harsh measure. The company argued that this decision affected not only the suspicious accounts but also millions of ordinary users who utilize the platform legitimately.
However, the High Court upheld the government's preventive measure. The court observed that since the ban was for a very limited duration (until June 22) and linked to a specific event (the NEET exam), it could not be deemed illegal or excessively harsh.

**What Was the Government's Stance?**
In an affidavit filed with the court, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) stated that the government was left with no alternative but to exercise its emergency blocking powers under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The government states that Telegram's architecture is such that the platform is repeatedly being used for cheating in examinations. The government informed the court that it had previously made multiple requests to Telegram to remove illegal and objectionable content, but the platform did not comply.

Furthermore, the National Testing Agency has identified several suspicious channels, groups, and bots on Telegram that were openly soliciting money from candidates under the pretext of selling NEET question papers. It is worth noting that these fraudulent channels had a reach of approximately 1.46 lakh accounts.

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