The government on Thursday rejected allegations that India’s regulatory framework for satellite communication services was discriminatory, asserting that all three global satellite communication companies were currently at broadly the same stage of the regulatory process.The clarification came after Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk accused unnamed “oligarchs” of blocking Starlink’s entry into India to protect their “monopolistic chokehold” over the Indian market. In a post on X, Musk alleged that Starlink was being prevented from launching its satellite internet services in India and described the situation as “a crime against the people of India”. “Unfortunately, we are being blocked by certain oligarchs in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people. You can guess who they are,” Musk said.Responding to the allegations, the government said, “A post is being circulated in social media regarding the fairness of India’s regulatory framework for satellite communication services and suggesting that it is being applied in a discriminatory manner”. The government said it has established 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,” the government said in a statement.The government said “each licensee is required to demonstrate compliance with security conditions” before proceeding further in the regulatory process. The security assessment is intended to ensure that satellite-based services meet various requirements related to the safety and security of users and their data. “Security assessment as part of this process is currently under way in respect of all the three licensees,” the government said. It added that once the security assessment is completed for a licensed entity, it can proceed to the next stage of seeking spectrum assignment. “At present, all the three entities are at broadly the same regulatory stage,” the government said, asserting that the suggestion that the regulatory framework or its application is unfair or discriminatory is “baseless and misconceived.”Unfortunately, we are being blocked by certain oligarchs in order to maintain their monopolistic chokehold on the Indian people. You can guess who they are …This is a crime against the people of India!— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 7, 2026