Telegram loses bid to overturn India temporary ban ruling

Telegram on Friday lost its legal bid to overturn an Indian government order temporarily blocking the messaging app, after a New Delhi court ruled that the government’s actions were legal and reasonable, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.

The ban, which ran from June 16 to June 22, has triggered an intense debate in the world’s most populous country. Free speech advocates argue it has set a concerning precedent by strengthening government powers to restrict access to any messaging platform when deemed necessary.

The government imposed the block after the results of India’s exam for students seeking admission to medical schools were cancelled last month amid allegations that the question paper had been leaked.

In its ruling, Delhi High Court Justice Tejas Karia said the government is “empowered … to issue directions for blocking the public access to Telegram.”

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

Telegram founder Pavel Durov has publicly criticised the ban, arguing that it punishes users of the platform while the exam leaks have continued to circulate elsewhere.

The temporary ban, which took Telegram offline and removed it from app stores this week, was implemented within hours by Indian telecom companies as well as major tech firms including Google and Apple.

The case marks the most high-profile court dispute between a global technology company and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government this year. Last year, the government reduced the number of officials authorised to order content takedowns following a legal battle with Elon Musk’s X.

The Telegram ban followed days of private exchanges between the two sides, during which the Indian government reportedly criticised Telegram for not proactively removing accounts distributing alleged leaked exam papers, Reuters reported on Thursday.

Telegram argued in court that the government had deliberately omitted details of its proactive moderation processes, stating it had already removed more than 900 links containing unlawful exam-related content.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev