Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], October 9 (ANI): Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy jumped into the ongoing conversation on social media platform X, where SpaceX CEO Elon Musk alleged that despite complying with all Indian laws, his satellite communications company had not got commercial operation licenses. Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi had already weighed in with his opinion on the matter.
In a post on X, Reddy highlighted the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government’s role in India’s digital transformation, citing the conceptualisation of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and the adoption of mobile-based digital payments infrastructure during the UPA-2 government’s tenure in 2012-13.
https://x.com/revanth_anumula/status/2108225635537871237
“Congress governments had always stood for digitisation and modernisation of India, and the stellar reform to conceptualise the UPI and adopt mobile-based digital payments infrastructure was taken up under the Congress-led UPA-2 government in 2012-13,” Reddy wrote.
He described UPI as a shining example of Indian innovation and called for the country to remain open to technological advancements in internet systems.
“India should welcome innovative solutions in cutting-edge internet systems and cannot afford to weaken Brand India globally to appease crony distractions,” the Telangana Chief Minister added.
Earlier, Rahul Gandhi, replying to Musk’s X post, wrote, “Welcome to India, Elon. Wait till you discover the other guy.”
Musk had earlier responded to various users who had given their opinion on the subject of Starlink’s operations in India. He alleged that despite spending five years complying with Indian laws, the license for commercial operations still eluded Starlink.
In one post, Musk wrote, “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? Is Ambani the real boss of India?
The post from Musk came hours after the Ministry of Communications unequivocally refuted claims by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk that vested interests were targeting his satellite communications company Starlink’s plans in India.
The Ministry said, “Government had put in place a fair and non-discriminatory authorisation framework for all telecommunication services, including satellite communication services. Under this, telecom licences have been granted to three Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite services based on non-geosynchronous satellite orbit-based satellite communications, as part of its commitment to enable provision of satellite communication services in India. Under the terms and conditions of the license, every such licensee is required to demonstrate compliance with security conditions,” the statement from the Ministry read.
“This is aimed at ensuring that services provided meet various security requirements to ensure the safety of all users and their data. Security assessment as part of this process is currently under way in respect of all three licensees. As and when this process is completed for a licensed entity, it may proceed to the next step of seeking assignment of spectrum. At present, all 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,” the ministry added.
Earlier, in a reply to a post on X that had claimed to cite reasons for why India needs Starlink, Musk alleged that the company was being blocked by ‘oligarchs’.
Musk said, “Unfortunately, we (Starlink) are being blocked by certain oligarchs to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people. You can guess who they are … This is a crime against the people of India.”
On October 7, Vice President of Starlink Business Operations Lauren Dreyer, while speaking at India Mobile Congress 2026, said the company had developed India-specific security controls and has built 20 gateway sites in India, adding that the company is ‘keeping Indian users’ data within India.
Dreyer said Starlink has invested in building the infrastructure required to serve the Indian market. The Starlink VP further added that the company has already invested in and built ground infrastructure in India, including 20 gateway sites with hundreds of antennas, and established operations to begin serving the market.
Dreyer said Starlink has been working closely with Indian regulators, industry stakeholders and operators for the past five years to adapt its operations to India’s requirements and prepare to serve the market. (ANI)
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