India rebuts Musk allegations over Starlink launch delay

India's Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has dismissed claims from SpaceX CEO Elon Musk that powerful business interests, particularly billionaire Mukesh Ambani, are preventing the launch of Starlink satellite internet service in India. Scindia stated that India does not permit monopolies and applies the same regulatory standards to all competing operators.

The dispute arose after Musk questioned Ambani's influence over the approval process on his social media platform X, suggesting that Starlink's delay was due to Ambani's control. However, the Ministry of Communications had previously dismissed Musk's earlier allegation that unnamed oligarchs were obstructing Starlink to protect their market position, describing the regulatory framework as fair and non-discriminatory.

Three licensed satellite communications operators, including Starlink, Reliance Jio's satellite venture, and Eutelsat OneWeb, are currently undergoing security assessments and are at similar stages in the approval process. Starlink has obtained a licence to provide satellite services but must still satisfy security conditions before proceeding to spectrum assignment, which is also a requirement for starting operations.