Even in WhatsApp which has E2EE they have reporting mechanisms so if someone starts a broadcast channel with the explicit intention of promoting illegal behaviour, it can at least be taken down by reporting. Personal experience and second hand accounts tell us that Telegram was known to mismanage these things in ways that a company of its size and impact cannot ignore.

There’s a lot of false dichotomy in the ongoing discussions here which assumes there’s a binary “control to the gov” or “freedom for all” choice. It’s a spectrum where at the most basic level, a robust process to handle reports of illegal activity should be accepted.

"Illegal" according to who? Government? The same government which can decide something else that we would consider fundamental right is also "illegal" at any time?

Illegal things are going to happen mostly in physical world regardless of where they plan it. The government can catch them while they're at it or after. The governments are fear-mongering and creating a public narrative to support mass surveillance.

There are only very few illegal things that can happen within the telegram app like fraud, or minor abuse. Those must be reported by end users and individual actions can be taken against them.

What the government is asking is a massive backdoor for surveillance in the name of preventing crime, but they decide what they can monitor. It is a pandora box and if you open it there is no going back. Even if the current government is asking it with purest intentions and manage it well, the same can not be said for any next elected governments.