We received practice papers through the app: Students highlight demerits of Telegram suspension
Kota, June 19
After the Delhi High Court upheld the Centre's suspension of Telegram till June 22, students preparing for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate 2026 examination highlighted how the ban can prove to be a disadvantage as they received previous years' papers and self-study material through the messaging app. Moreover, teachers also shared practice questions on the platform.
The NEET-UG 2026 re-examination is scheduled to be held on June 21, following the alleged May 3 paper leak.
Speaking to IANS, a student said that temporarily suspending Telegram is both good as well as bad.
"According to what the government is thinking, they believe paper leaks happen through Telegram. So, in one way it is a good step to stop that. But it also affects studies. We used to use Telegram for studying as well," he added.
Underlining the demerits of banning the online platform, he mentioned: "We would get previous year papers, self-study material and other practice content from there. So that will be a difficulty now. The PDFs of teaching content were also available on the platform."
Another student echoed that the teachers provided practice questions on the platform which aided their preparations for the examination.
A student who has been attending coaching classes for the exam at a Kota-based institute, said: "I feel the Union government has done well by banning Telegram, but there are other apps as well like Discord, Snapchat and WhatsApp. Something should be done so that paper leaks do not happen at all."
"Suspending Telegram is only hiding the mistake that has already happened, but it cannot stop future problems," he asserted
While backing the Union government's decision, another student urged for permanent measures that would ensure such discrepancies are never repeated.
The Delhi High Court on Friday upheld the Centre's decision to temporarily suspend Telegram's services across India ahead of the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination, holding that the Union government had strictly followed the procedure prescribed under law while invoking emergency blocking powers.
Telegram had approached the Delhi High Court challenging the Centre's decision to temporarily suspend its services across India till June 22 and disable its message-editing feature till June 30.
— IANS
Reader Comments
As a NEET aspirant in Kota, I completely agree with the students. Most of my practice material came from Telegram channels. Now I have to scramble for resources. The government should focus on catching the real culprits behind paper leaks, not punish millions of innocent students. This is like banning cars because someone used one in a crime!
I'm glad the Delhi High Court is taking action. Paper leaks destroy the dreams of lakhs of hardworking students. Temporary suspension is a small price to pay if it ensures fair exams. But the government must provide an alternative platform for study materials before doing something like this. Students shouldn't suffer for the system's failures.
The student who said "suspending Telegram is only hiding the mistake" is absolutely right. What about WhatsApp, Discord, and Signal? Don't they also have groups? This is reactive governance at its worst. We need a permanent solution - digital forensics, strict monitoring of exam centers, and severe punishment for cheaters. Balme mat karo app par! 🙏
I'm a teacher and I used Telegram to share free NCERT solutions and practice questions with underprivileged students who can't afford coaching. Now what do I do? This decision is hurting the most vulnerable students the most. We need better solutions, not bans. Government should create an official portal for verified study material instead.
Honestly, this is a complex issue. On one hand, paper leaks undermine the entire education system. On the other, students depend on Telegram for genuine study material. Why can't the government work with educational channels to whitelist them? Banning everything is lazy policy
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.