Will Telegram Face A Ban In India? Indian Government Investigates Extortion And Gambling Issues, Says Report

The popular messaging application 'Telegram has been making headlines recently after the arrest of its Russian-born Emirati CEO, Pavel Durov at the Le Bourget Airpor airport in Paris, France by the authorities, as per reports, for offences pertaining to the messaging application that he runs.

Ahead of this, the messaging application is also currently facing investigation by the Indian government, according to Moneycontrol's report.

As per the report, the investigation is potentially based on the misuse of the messaging application for activities such as extortion and gambling.

The report further added that this probe could lead to serious consequences such as a possible ban on the app.

Investigation underway

As per Moneycontrol, the inquiry into Telegram is being led by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C), operating under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

The investigation underway is related to determining whether the application is being used for legal activities or whether it complies with Indian regulations. The final decision will hinge on the findings of this investigation, Moneycontrol reported.

Pavel Durov’s arrest and its impact

On August 12, Durov was detained due to concerns over the app’s moderation policies, specifically its alleged failure to prevent criminal activities.

The arrest sparked widespread criticism from the tech community and a notable reaction from figures like tech billionaire Elon Musk and whistleblower Edward Snowden.

Telegram is one of the most renowned applications in the world and was launched by Durov in 2013.

Previous controversies related to it in India

The messaging application has faced scrutiny before as well from India. According to the report, back in October, the IT ministry issued notices to Telegram for not removing child sexual abuse material from the platform. In addition to this, in May, several encrypted messaging platforms were blocked by the government, noting ongoing concerns about online safety and illegal activities.