'Prime Minister Ambani, India's real boss'; Elon Musk with scathing criticism over Starlink delay in India

NEW DELHI: Multi billionaire and business magnate Elon Musk sharply vented out his frustration at Indian business tycoon Mukesh Ambani following the hurdles faced in launching Starlink internet services in India. Musk shared a post on X referring the Relaince charman as "Prime Minister Ambani." Musk also quipped, asking for forgiveness for failing to realize that Ambani is India's "real boss."

“Naturally, you would prefer to maintain your monopolistic exploitation of the great people of India, but would you nonetheless consider allowing Starlink to compete?” Musk wrote.

Musk alleged that dominant telecom giants in India are obstructing the launch of Starlink internet in the country. Starlink provides satellite internet via small dish antennas installed on rooftops, similar to Direct-to-Home (DTH) TV dishes. Although Starlink has secured a GMPCS license, it has yet to clear the final security hurdles.

Last December, Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia stated that satellite internet services would become available in the country once the Telecom Regulatory Authority finalized spectrum pricing; however, there has been no further progress on this matter. Reliance and Airtel have also developed similar satellite internet systems.