The government invoked Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, a powerful legal tool for censoring online content, to enforce the blackout. Beyond the temporary shutdown, the agency is demanding that Telegram disable its message-editing function until June 30. Officials argue that this specific feature allows fraudsters to retroactively fabricate evidence of paper leaks, complicating investigations into the integrity of the country’s largest medical entrance test.
Digital rights advocates have pushed back, labeling the intervention a heavy-handed, disproportionate response. The Internet Freedom Foundation warned that blocking an entire platform sets a concerning precedent, questioning the legality of such broad restrictions under existing cyber laws. This move follows a massive paper leak scandal last month that forced a federal investigation and triggered intense scrutiny of the national testing system. Despite the official order, the service remained operational in India shortly after the announcement, highlighting the technical and bureaucratic hurdles of enforcing a nationwide digital blockade in the app’s largest global market.
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