The Delhi High Court today reserved its verdict on Telegram’s plea challenging the Centre’s decision to temporarily restrict access to the messaging platform ahead of the NEET-UG re-examination on June 21. During the hearing, the Court questioned the move, asking how the rights of nearly 150 million users could be curtailed over concerns that a section of examination candidates might misuse the platform.
The Centre defended the restriction, arguing that Telegram’s architecture, including its bot infrastructure and cloud-based operations, makes it vulnerable to misuse for large-scale dissemination of leaked examination material. Appearing for the Centre, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said Telegram’s features pose unique challenges for law enforcement agencies. The court, however, observed that the key issue was whether the rights of a large number of users could be restricted to protect another set of citizens.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology imposed the restriction under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act on the recommendation of the National Testing Agency. The move aims to prevent misuse of the platform during the NEET-UG re-examination scheduled for June 21, following the cancellation of the May 3 test amid paper leak allegations. The judge asked the counsel for both parties to submit written submissions, if any, by 7 pm.
