Telegram loses bid to overturn India’s temporary blocking of the app

NEW DELHI: Telegram on Friday lost its bid to overturn an Indian government order temporarily banning the messaging app, with a New Delhi court ruling that the government’s actions, aimed at preserving the integrity of a key med school exam, were legal and reasonable.

The ban of the app from June 16 to June 22 has stirred an intense debate in the world’s most populous nation. Free speech rights activists say it has set a worrying precedent that cements government powers to curb the use of any messaging platform whenever it sees fit.

The government put the block in place after the results of the country’s exam for students hoping to get into medical schools were scrapped last month amid allegations that the question paper had been leaked. The government is “empowered … to issue directions for blocking the public access to Telegram,” Delhi High Court Justice Tejas Karia said in his ruling.

Telegram, which has more than 150 million users in India and counts the country as its biggest market, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the verdict. The Indian government also did not respond to a request for comment.

“It sets a concerning precedent with consequences for the open internet that extend well beyond this case,” digital rights group Internet Freedom Foundation said on X after the verdict.

The block only affected Telegram, with the government arguing that the app represented a unique case, citing features such as the easy recreation of blocked channels and the way phone numbers and username-based interactions can be concealed, which create “a persistent enforcement challenge”.