Musk blames ‘oligarchs’ for Starlink’s delays in India

The SpaceX chief said the unnamed interests wanted to maintain their “monopolistic chokehold,” calling it a crime against the Indian people Elon Musk has blamed “certain oligarchs” for holding up the launch of his satellite internet service Starlink in India to maintain their “monopolistic chokehold” on the Indian people.

New Delhi has rejected the suggestion that its satellite approval process was unfair.

The SpaceX CEO made the remarks on the social media platform X, which he also owns, on Wednesday while responding to a post arguing that India needs Starlink to connect areas beyond the reach of conventional networks.

The post said 11,256 Indian villages still lacked 4G coverage as of May.

“Unfortunately, we are being blocked by certain oligarchs in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people,” the world’s richest man wrote, adding “You can guess who they are.” Apart from Starlink, Eutelsat OneWeb, backed by the Bharti Group, and JIO Satellite Communications, backed by Reliance Jio, hold the Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite (GMPCS) license in India.

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! — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 7, 2026 Reliance Jio is owned by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, the second richest person in the country.

Bharti Group is owned by billionaire Sunil Mittal.

Reliance Jio is also planning its own network of around 1,600 low-Earth-orbit satellites, which could become a direct rival to Starlink’s constellation.

India’s Communications Ministry said in response to Musk’s post that all three licensed operators are at broadly the same regulatory stage, with security assessments underway, and called claims of discriminatory treatment “baseless and misconceived.” 📹 Hope Musk Is Listening: PM Modi Says India’s Data Is Already Cheap Speaking at India Mobile Congress, he highlighted 🇮🇳’s expanding telecom infrastructure and falling data costs, saying smartphones have now become “gaming consoles” for millions.

Starlink chief Elon Musk on Wednesday said his service would bring “high-speed, affordable Internet” to Indians who cannot afford current prices or lack a connection. — RT_India (@RT_India_news) October 8, 2026 Starlink’s wait to begin commercial operations in India has lasted four years.

The company received its telecom license in June last year but still needs the remaining security clearances and spectrum assignment before services can start.