Blocking Telegram a bad idea: CBSE OSM whistleblower Sarthak Sidhant flags NTA's ‘incompetency’

The Centre has temporarily restricted access to Telegram in India ahead of the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination scheduled for June 21.

The Centre's decision to temporarily restrict Telegram ahead of the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination is a “bad idea”, according to the Class 12 student who exposed irregularities in the CBSE's On-Screen Marking (OSM) system.

Sarthak Sidhant is a Class 12 student from Ranchi who came into the spotlight after raising concerns about the CBSE's On-Screen Marking (OSM) system. (X/@rahulgandhi)

Sarthak Sidhant, who came into the spotlight after analysing CBSE's digital evaluation system and tender documents, said the decision would affect many legitimate users of the platform.

“Blocking Telegram nationwide, just because of NTA's incompetency, is generally a bad idea since many teachers and other professionals use Telegram to share resources,” Sidhant told Hindustan Times.

“Telegram is also widely used for many other reasons such as secure communication, media consumption, and many businesses and technical projects use Telegram's API to create automated bots for customer service, etc,” he added.

The re-test is being conducted after the original NEET examination held in May was cancelled following question paper leak allegedly by insiders. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched a probe into the examination scam.

Why Telegram is banned

Days before the re-test, rumours of another paper leak surfaced on social media. Both the Press Information Bureau's (PIB) fact-checking unit and the NTA dismissed the claims as fake and asked candidates to rely only on official sources.

The NTA on Tuesday said Telegram's message-editing feature was allegedly being used to create fake evidence of paper leaks. Channel administrators could edit old posts after an exam and replace attachments with question papers while keeping the original timestamp, as per the agency. These posts could then be shared as supposed proof that the paper had leaked before the examination.

Due to this, the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) has banned Telegram in India until June 22. It has also asked the platform to disable its message-editing feature in India until June 30.

The NTA said the steps were aimed at stopping the spread of fake paper leak claims and preventing cheating rackets from targeting students and their families.

Who is Sarthak Sidhant?

Sarthak Sidhant is a student from Ranchi who raised concerns about the CBSE's OSM system.

After obtaining scanned copies of his board exam answer sheets, he said he noticed discrepancies in his marks and began examining CBSE's evaluation process and tender documents. He later presented his findings before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education.

NEET paper leak case 2026

The NEET examination was cancelled after authorities confirmed a question paper leak, leading to a CBI probe into the network involved in distributing the sheets.

Among the key accused are P V Kulkarni, a chemistry teacher, Manisha Mandhare, a biology teacher, and Manisha Havaldar, a physics teacher. The CBI alleges they played central roles in the leak of questions from their respective subjects.

The agency has also arrested Manoj Shirure, a doctor from Latur in Maharashtra, and Tejas Harshadkumar Shah, a physics teacher at a coaching institute in Pune. According to investigators, Shirure allegedly helped three students obtain leaked chemistry questions, while Shah allegedly received leaked physics questions before the examination, HT reported earlier.

A total of 13 people have been arrested so far. The CBI has conducted searches at 49 locations and says its investigation is ongoing.

A Delhi court has now allowed Yash Yadav, one of the accused in the case, to appear for the re-examination while in judicial custody. The court said that the right to education is a fundamental right and the NTA issued him an admit card without objection.