• Source:JND

Telegram has been in the headlines soon after the owner Pavel Durov was arrested by the French police over child exploitation and drug trafficking. Now the reports claim that the Indian government is currently investigating the messaging platform over criminal activities such as extortion and gambling.

According to reports, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, which falls under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), is looking into the potential actions. According to a Moneycontrol report citing an unknown government official, the probe could lead to the ban of Telegram in India.

Musk Defends Telegram's Durov, Calls For Zuckerberg’s Arrest Over Instagram's Child Exploitation Issues

The messaging platform has been a concern for Indian authorities because of the increasing criminal activities including scams, crimes and more. Recently, the UGC-NEET controversy sparked a debate on the social platform over such incidents.

The current investigation is reportedly focused on extortion and gambling on the platform. Well, this is not the first time Telegram has faced criticism in India. Last year, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology directed Telegram and other platforms to remove child sexual abuse material from the applications.

Meanwhile, the founder of Telegram, Pavel Durov, who was born in Russia and was detained in Paris, has nothing to conceal, and the company released a statement saying that it is ridiculous to hold an owner accountable for misuse of the messaging and social media network.

Pavel Durov Arrested: Russia Says France 'Refusing To Cooperate' After Telegram CEO Held At Airport

Azerbaijani billionaire Durov, 39, was dubbed "Russia's Mark Zuckerberg" and was detained at Le Bourget airport outside of Paris just moments after he touched down on a private plane late on Saturday. The Telegram CEO's arrest sparked outrage from Elon Musk, the owner of X, who said that free expression in Europe was being violated, as well as a warning from Moscow to Paris that he should be granted his rights.

Durov remained in detention on Monday and could stay there for up to four days, according to French news station Franceinfo, despite the fact that France has not released an official statement regarding the arrest. In a brief statement issued just after midnight Paris time, Telegram maintained that its moderation was "within industry standards and constantly improving" and that the Dubai-based business complied with EU law. However, it provided no further specifics regarding the arrest.

"Telegram's CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe," stated Telegram. "It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for abuse of that platform." "We're hoping that this will be resolved quickly. Telegram is with every person.

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