NEET-UG 2026 re-exam: Telegram blocked in India, but remains accessible on VPN

New Delhi: Instant messaging platform Telegram has become inaccessible to many users in India after the government temporarily restricted the app ahead of the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination, though experts said it still works through VPN services that route traffic through foreign servers.

Google has delisted the app, and Apple’s App Store has also removed it in compliance with the government order, according to industry sources. The action comes ahead of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (UG) re-exam scheduled for June 21.

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Voyager Infosec Director Jiten Jain said blocking Telegram would not prevent paper leaks, as users can still access the platform through VPNs. “Blocking of Telegram will not help the paper leak. It continues to be operational on VPNs which bypass Indian servers and connect with foreign servers for operations,” he told PTI.

The government has directed Google and Apple to remove Telegram from their app stores until June 22 to help prevent alleged paper leaks during the upcoming exam. It has also ordered Telegram to disable the message-editing feature for already-posted messages in India until June 30, citing concerns that the feature was being used to fabricate post-facto evidence related to exam leaks.

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov said the move would not stop paper leaks, but would only shift the activity to other platforms. In a post on Tuesday, he said the week-long ban affects more than 150 million Telegram users in India rather than the individuals responsible for leaking exam material.

In a later post, Durov alleged that Reliance Group, in which Meta has a partial stake, may have lobbied along with WhatsApp to seek a ban on Telegram in India. A senior telecom industry source dismissed the claim as “fake news,” saying Durov had confused Reliance Communications with Reliance Industries Ltd.

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