Telegram reappeared on the Google Play Store in India on 23 June, hours after a temporary government ban expired at midnight. The app had been blocked since 16 June, along with its web version, to prevent the circulation of leaked question papers for the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET), the gateway to the country’s medical schools. While Google restored the listing, Apple’s App Store lagged, and some existing users on Jio and Airtel networks continued to report login failures and connection drops, indicating a patchy restoration.

Indian authorities ordered the block after investigators alleged that Telegram channels were selling fake exam papers and coordinating organised cheating. Officials said the platform’s encrypted chats, anonymous usernames and large public channels made it difficult to halt the spread of leaked material quickly. Telegram challenged the order in the Delhi High Court, arguing it violated free speech and punished millions of ordinary users; the court upheld the ban as a lawful emergency measure to protect the integrity of a national examination. The company said it had removed more than 900 links to illegal content, but founder Pavel Durov criticised the move as ineffective, claiming the leaks simply migrated to other apps.

The ban triggered a collateral technical incident. Reliance Communications, a legacy operator under insolvency, misconfigured its Border Gateway Protocol routes while implementing the blocking order, briefly hijacking Telegram’s global traffic and causing outages in countries including the United Arab Emirates, where Telegram is headquartered. Durov initially accused Reliance Jio of sabotage, a claim Jio categorically denied. The episode exposed the risks of applying domestic blocking orders through outdated network infrastructure. Meanwhile, the exam scandal’s human toll was reported by Australian media: at least six students took their own lives after the initial results were cancelled, underscoring the extreme pressure of India’s high-stakes examination system.

Telegram remains subject to a separate directive to disable its message editing feature until 30 June. The restoration of full service is uneven, with some users still relying on VPNs. Viewed from Moscow, Russian state media presented the Indian ban as part of a wider pattern of state pressure on the platform, noting that Russia itself has opened a criminal investigation against Durov for “aiding terrorism” and that Iran and Spain have previously imposed blocks. The episode reinforces the growing friction between encrypted messaging services and governments seeking rapid content control, with India’s temporary ban now a reference point for emergency measures during critical national examinations.