‘Certain oligarchs’ blocking Starlink’s entry in India, says its chief Elon Musk
New Delhi, Oct 8: Elon Musk tonight said “certain oligarchs” were blocking his Starlink internet network from entering India “in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people”.
He, however, did not identify those “oligarchs”, saying “you can guess who they are”.
The comment by the world’s richest man came hours after his company’s satellite broadband arm SpaceX told the 10th India Mobile Congress in Delhi that its Indian infrastructure is completely ready and just “waiting” for the remaining government approvals.
“We are standing ready to serve India once India is ready. We’re ready to work with the government. We are ready to work with operators and with industry to this end,” Lauren Dreyer, Vice-President, Starlink Business Operations at SpaceX, said at India Mobile Congress 2026.
Hours later, Musk posted on X, “Unfortunately, we are being blocked by certain oligarchs in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people. You can guess who they are … This is a crime against the people of India!”
Starlink has been trying to enter India since 2021.
During this period, it has been forced to refund pre-bookings, has waited years for a licence, and has had a satellite application sent back.
The ground stations of Starlink are built and the licences are in hand. The security agencies signed off in April, and last month the government cleared the pricing framework for satellite spectrum. The only things missing are final approvals and the spectrum itself.
India’s telecom market is controlled by a few very large players. The biggest is based in Mumbai and is run by a man whose house is a 27-storey landmark.
That same group runs Jio-SES, one of only three licensed satellite broadband operators and a direct rival to Starlink.
In 2025, Jio and Airtel both signed deals to sell Starlink equipment to their customers.
The tycoons in Mumbai and Delhi have kept quiet so far. (BVI)
