Reliance responds to Musk’s barbs on Starlink delay: ‘All must abide by Indian laws’

Reliance Industries has said it welcomes competition in the satellite communications space, including from Elon Musk’s Starlink, in its first official response to the billionaire’s allegations that “certain oligarchs” were responsible for delaying the launch of Starlink in India, where he also questioned whether the group’s chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani was the ‘real boss of India’.

“In light of recent remarks about Reliance and the Indian market, we wish to place the facts on record. Like every Indian enterprise, Reliance has grown in an India that welcomes investment and innovation, homegrown or international, that improve the lives of the people. That openness rests on the rule of law. As the Government of India has stated, it applies the same process to every applicant, Indian or foreign. Jio’s own satellite services await clearances,” Reliance Industries said in a statement Friday morning.

“At Reliance, we have never feared competition. We see it as the truest test of who serves the customer best. Jio itself entered India’s crowded telecom market in 2016 as the newest player, with not a single customer. In just ten years, Jio has earned the trust of over 530 million customers and given Indians some of the best digital infrastructure and most affordable data in the world,” it said.

Statement from Reliance Industries

In light of recent remarks about Reliance and the Indian market, we wish to place the facts on record.

Like every Indian enterprise, Reliance has grown in an India that welcomes investment and innovation, homegrown or international, that improve the lives of the people.

That openness rests on the rule of law. As the Government of India has stated, it applies the same process to every applicant, Indian or foreign. Jio’s own satellite services await clearances.

At Reliance, we have never feared competition. We see it as the truest test of who serves the customer best. Jio itself entered India’s crowded telecom market in 2016 as the newest player, with not a single customer. In just ten years, Jio has earned the trust of over 530 million customers and given Indians some of the best digital infrastructure and most affordable data in the world.

We welcome competition in satellite communications, including Starlink. Every player, Jio included, must serve the people of India and abide by the laws and policies of the land.

— Reliance Industries Limited (@RIL_Updates) October 16, 2026

“We welcome competition in satellite communications, including Starlink. Every player, Jio included, must serve the people of India and abide by the laws and policies of the land,” the group added.

Starlink is among the operators that have secured GMPCS (global mobile personal communication by satellite) licences and other statutory approvals needed to launch satellite communication, or satcom, services in the country. Others who have received it include Bharti-backed Eutelsat OneWeb, and Jio Satellite Communications Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Jio Platforms. Jeff Bezos-owned Amazon Leo is also in contention for a licence.

Last week, Musk took to social media, blaming “certain oligarchs” for blocking Starlink in the country, and calling it a “crime against the people of India”. The Centre has said satcom applications were pending security clearance at the Home Ministry, saying the country’s regulatory framework for satcom services is fair and non-discriminatory.

In a statement the Ministry of Communications has said, “The Government has put in place a fair and non-discriminatory authorisation framework for all telecommunication services, including satellite communication services… Under the terms and conditions of licence, every such licensee is required to demonstrate compliance with security conditions…aimed at ensuring that services provided meet various security requirements to ensure safety of all users and their data,” the ministry said without explicitly naming Musk.

“Security assessment as part of this process is currently underway in respect of all the three licensees. As and when this process is completed for a licenced entity, it may proceed to the next step of seeking assignment of spectrum. At present, all the three entities are at broadly the same regulatory stage. As such, the suggestion that the framework or its application is unfair or discriminatory is baseless and misconceived,” it added.

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Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman of Bharti Airtel, said on Wednesday that the group was ahead in line of Starlink in receiving final clearances for launching satellite communications services in India.

Last July, Starlink had received what industry executives said was the last regulatory approval needed to launch the service in India from the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) granted authorisation to the satcom company for its satellite constellation. Before that, the company had received an operator licence from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), three years after first applying for one.

Despite the regulatory clearance, it is understood the government is yet to green-light formal launch of these services over security concerns. The concern particularly stems from anxieties around foreign satcom operators potentially bypassing Indian gateways to offer their services, an event when the government might lose control over the service.

The delay in Starlink’s final security clearance comes as Reliance Jio is building a sovereign low earth satellite constellation in India, and is considering a 1,600–1,650 satellite network costing an estimated $10–15 billion.