Govt bans Telegram in view of NEET exam, Google removes app from Play Store
New Delhi, June 16: The Goverment of India today temporarily banned the operation of ‘Telegram’ in view of the NEET Examination, after which Google removed messaging App from the Play Store.
Apple is likely to follow suit in compliance with an order issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
The government ordered Google and Apple to temporarily delist Telegram from the App stores to prevent any leak of the paper during the upcoming NEET examination on June 21.
When checked, Google Play Store displayed the message that the app is not available.
Queries sent to Google, Apple and did not elicit any immediate reply.
MeitY acted on recommendations made by the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the NEET examination, and issued a direction under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000,.
It ordered restricting of access to the Telegram platform in India for a defined and limited period ending June 22, 2026 covering the day of the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination and its immediate aftermath.
A separate direction requires Telegram to disable in India the message-editing feature for already-posted messages till June 30, addressing the specific structural feature through which the platform has been used to fabricate after-the-event “paper leak” evidence in respect of national examinations, the NTA said in a statement. (BVI)
