NEW DELHI (AFP): India blocked access to Telegram messenger on Tuesday ahead of a retest of a nationwide medical college entrance examination, after a scandal last month over a question paper leak.
The failure of the hugely competitive exam, along with a separate marking fiasco in high school tests, sparked outrage and fuelled youth protests demanding the education minister's resignation.
The electronics ministry issued the order restricting access to Telegram until Monday, the day of the retest. Message-editing features, which allow users to alter existing posts, will remain restricted until June 30.
"Both measures have been taken in the interest of public order, in response to the organised use of the platform by cheating rackets to defraud candidates," India's National Testing Agency (NTA) said in a statement.
The National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) is one of the country's most competitive exams, attracting more than two million aspiring doctors.
The NEET exam was scrapped in May following allegations that the question paper was leaked in advance, including reports that it had been circulated through Telegram channels.
Responding to the electronics ministry's decision, Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov said the week-long ban "hasn't stopped anything" but "punishes" 150 million ordinary users of the messaging app in India and "not the insiders who leaked the exam materials".
"The leaks just moved to other apps," Durov said in a post on X.
The Internet Freedom Foundation, a digital rights group, said the ban "is a disproportionate answer to exam fraud".
The intense pressure to succeed in the national exams has fuelled a lucrative industry, with tens of thousands of coaching centres across the country.
Fierce competition means that success often comes at a significant personal and financial cost -- creating opportunities for criminal networks seeking to sell leaked examination papers to the highest bidder.
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India's Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested the "kingpin" alleged to be behind the leak, naming him as a chemistry lecturer involved in the examination process for the NTA.
The education ministry launched on Monday a website where the public can report "suspicious claims, unauthorised content, or fraudulent activities" related to the NEET exam.
Indian air force helicopters on Tuesday were seen readying for the delivery of the test papers, to "prevent any possibility of leak", the Press Trust of India news agency reported, broadcasting images of preparations in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.
Despite rapid economic growth, millions of people in the world's most populous nation still struggle to find stable and well-paying jobs, fuelling discontent.
Students spend years preparing for exams in the hope of securing a professional career, with the pressure intensified by limited opportunities and intense competition.
Indian media reported suicides of teenagers following the fiasco over the NEET exam.
The NEET scandal came on top of another controversy, related to the online marking system used for tests taken by nearly two million high school students.
Many students said the system had assigned incorrect grades or issued results to the wrong candidates.
Anger at the exam mishandling has been channelled by the satirical "Cockroach People's Party", which has won millions of followers on social media since its launch in May.
The movement emerged after India's Chief Justice Surya Kant reportedly likened young people who criticised the government to "cockroaches" and "parasites" during a court hearing, sparking outrage among the youth. Kant later said his comments were taken out of context. -- AFP
