‘Is Ambani real boss,’ asks Elon Musk after accusing ‘oligarchs’ of stalling Starlink India launch

Trillionaire Elon Musk on Thursday asked if “Ambani is the real boss” of India amid an online debate about his Starlink satellite internet network not having received clearance to operate in the country.

“Starlink is licensed in over 165 countries and has spent five years complying with every single law and requirement of the government of India, so why still no license?” he asked.

Musk did not specify which member of the Ambani family he was referring to. Scroll has requested comment from Reliance Industries Limited. This report will be updated if we receive a comment.

In a response to Musk’s remark, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said: “Welcome to India, Elon. Wait till you discover the other guy.”

Musk was responding to a comment by another social media user who alleged that the Indian government was “more interested in protecting the interests of crony capitalists than of citizens”.

The businessman’s remark came a day after he accused “certain oligarchs” in India of blocking the launch of Starlink, saying that they are trying to protect their “monopolistic chokehold” over the industry.

Starlink provides internet access through a constellation of satellites placed in low-earth orbit by Musk’s spacecraft manufacturing company SpaceX.

If launched in India, Starlink will compete in the country’s satellite internet market with Jio Space Technology, a joint venture part of Mukesh Ambani-led...

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