Elon Musk takes aim at Indian billionaire Ambani as Starlink launch stalls

SpaceX founder Elon Musk on Thursday took a shot at Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, a day after he accused certain “oligarchs” of stalling the launch of his company’s Starlink internet service in the country.

Musk said Starlink was not being allowed to launch in India despite having spent “five years complying with every single law and requirement” of the government.

“Is Ambani the real boss of India?” Musk questioned in a post, having blamed a day earlier “oligarchs” in the country for maintaining a “monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people.”

Ambani’s Jio is the largest telecom and internet service operator in India and, along with the other major operator, Airtel, controls about 80% of the market.

Musk’s comment against Ambani caused a political stir in India, eliciting a response from India’s leader of opposition, Rahul Gandhi, who has consistently alleged that the government is being influenced by powerful businessmen in India.

“Wait till you meet the other one,” Gandhi said in a veiled reference to India’s wealthiest businessman Gautam Adani, who has been a key target of the politician. “This is indeed troubling,” Musk said in response to Gandhi.

Reliance Industries, Ambani’s flagship company, did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

In March last year, Starlink signed pacts with Ambani’s Jio Platforms and India’s second-largest telecom company Airtel to explore cross-selling the products and services of the U.S. company in India.

Following the interim deals, Musk’s satellite internet business in July last year got a license to launch its services in India.

But Starlink could not launch. Bloomberg reported earlier this year that New Delhi had frozen approvals for Starlink over concerns that its terminals could be used despite the service not being licensed.

Meanwhile, Akash Ambani, the son of Mukesh and managing director of Jio Platforms, told shareholders in June that his company was planning to roll out low-orbit satellite communications in the country.

Jio is looking to set up set up a satellite network of around 1,600 LEO satellites and 23 ground stations to expand connectivity across India, according to local media reports. Starlink, on the other hand, has 11,000 satellites in orbit that provide service to people in over 170 countries and territories.

Akash Ambani on Thursday told Moneycontrol, a platform owned by the Reliance Group, that the company believes “India needs its own indigenous stack of technologies.”

Satellite communication is not the only space where Musk’s business plans in India have failed to take off. Tesla, which was launched last year in the South Asian country, has received an underwhelming response, with the…