On Wednesday, a post from SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk, who has 241.6 million followers on X, sparked a new battle involving the satellite firm, the Indian telecom sector, and the government.
Musk alleged that Indian “oligarchs” were scuttling Starlink’s launch in the country to maintain a “monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people.” While he named no individuals or companies, the troika commanding the Indian telecom industry comprises Reliance Jio Infocomm, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea. By Thursday morning, the government refuted any suggestions of bias as “baseless and misconceived”.
Mint explains the satellite wars now engulfing India’s telecom industry.
How did the battle lines get drawn?
Starlink registered its business in India in 2021 and began advertising and preselling its services until the government stepped in, saying the company lacked a license and could not presell satellite connections without regulatory approval.
That marked the start of a long-drawn-out war between the US firm and its Indian rivals. Starlink reapplied for the license in 2022 and eventually secured it last year. OneWeb India was the first to receive the global mobile personal communications by satellite (GMPCS) licence in April 2022, followed by Jio Satellite in October 2022, and Starlink in June 2025.
More than four years after India issued the first license for services, commercial launches for all players remain stalled due to security concerns and mistrust surrounding foreign satellite operators.
What is stalling approvals for satellite operators?
Awaiting the final nod are Elon Musk-owned Starlink, Bharti-backed Eutelsat OneWeb, and Jio Satellite Communications Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Jio Platforms. Jeff Bezos-owned Amazon Leo is also vying for a licence.
Mint had reported in August that the government’s primary concern is ensuring India maintains control over these satellite systems before granting permission. The fear is that Indian data could leak outside the country, raising critical questions over data security and national sovereignty.
This delay in approvals for existing licence holders carries added significance as builds a sovereign low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation for India to challenge the likes of Starlink and Amazon Leo. Satellite internet services are already available in several global markets, including the US, the UK, France, Germany, and Italy.
What else have Starlink and Jio clashed over?
Besides regulatory delays, Starlink and Jio also clashed over how airwaves should be allotted. Jio argued that spectrum for satellite services should be auctioned just like terrestrial airwaves. In response to a consultation paper a few years ago, Jio noted that if satellite service providers want to use airwaves to compete with terrestrial operators, they must follow the same rules.
Ironically, both Airtel and Jio have signed pacts with Musk’s SpaceX to offer Starlink broadband services in India. This September, the Department of Telecommunications () decided that spectrum will be assigned administratively and approved a spectrum usage charge of 5% of adjusted gross revenue for satellite internet providers, including Starlink, Eutelsat OneWeb, and Jio Satellite. According to officials, this proposal is currently awaiting cabinet approval.
What triggered the recent war of words?
The battle culminated on Wednesday, just hours after Lauren Dreyer, vice president of Starlink Business Operations at SpaceX, said at the India Mobile Congress that Starlink had tailored its operations to meet all security and regulatory requirements, including storing Indian user data within the country.
Musk then posted about the delays: “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.”
The ministry of communications came down strongly on these allegations on Thursday, saying, “The government has put in place a fair and non-discriminatory authorization framework for all telecommunication services, including satellite communication services.”
The ministry pointed out that security assessments of licensees are currently underway. “This is aimed at ensuring that services provided meet various security requirements to ensure safety of all users and their data… As such, the suggestion that the framework or its application is unfair or discriminatory is baseless and misconceived,” it said.