Starlink entry row: Is Ambani the real boss of India, asks Elon Musk

NEW DELHI: The terrestrial war over providing satellite communication (satcom) services heated up several notches Thursday, with Elon Musk asking on X, “Is Ambani the real boss of India”, hours after govt denied his charge that “certain oligarchs” were blocking Starlink’s entry to India.In his first salvo fired Wednesday, Musk had not taken any name, only saying, “You can guess who they are.”Congress MP and leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi waded in, responding to Musk on X, “Welcome to India, Elon. Wait till you discover the other guy.”Musk responded: “Thank you, Rahul. This is indeed troubling.”Musk’s comments came hours after department of telecom rejected his claims, saying, “India’s regulatory framework for satellite communication services is fair and non-discriminatory.”

Sunil Bharti-backed Eutelsat OneWeb, Mukesh Ambani‘s Reliance Jio, and Starlink plan to start satcom services in India. Security assessment is currently underway for all three, the govt said. “As and when this process is completed for a licensed entity, it may proceed to the next step of seeking assignment of spectrum … all three entities are at broadly the same regulatory stage.”

Musk: People who oppose Starlink hurt least-served

An unfazed Musk, however, carried on his attack on X on Thursday. “Starlink is licensed in over 165 countries and has spent five years complying with every single law and requirement of the govt of India, so why still no licence? Is Ambani the real boss of India?”Congress MP Rahul Gandhi waded into the controversy, responding to Musk on X, “Welcome to India, Elon. Wait till you discover the other guy.” The US trillionaire replied to Gandhi, saying, “Thank you, Rahul. This is indeed troubling.”Other posts by Musk on X on Thursday included: “People who oppose Starlink hurt only the least-served. The wealthy or those living in large cities already have good Internet, so they don’t understand…“Starlink will help the least-served in India… Starlink will be of great help to areas of India that have bad or no Internet and even no mobile coverage. No country has perfect coverage, including America, but Starlink can fill in the coverage gaps for those who most need it.”At the India Mobile Congress, Bharti Airtel chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal said his satcom venture, Eutelsat OneWeb, is also awaiting approvals to start operations.Reliance Jio chairman Akash Ambani said his company is making “rapid progress” but did not give a timeframe on when it will be launched. “What we are promising is that every Indian home will have a broadband connection that they can connect to,” he said.