Rahul Gandhi restates anti-monopoly stance amid Starlink licensing dispute

India’s opposition leader called for a level playing field as Elon Musk and the government sparred over the satellite service’s market entry.

Rahul Gandhi said he opposes market monopolies, not business itself. In a video posted by the Congress party, he called on the government to remain neutral and let companies compete on equal terms.

His remarks came amid a dispute over Starlink’s entry into India. Elon Musk said the service is licensed in more than 165 countries and claimed it had spent five years meeting Indian requirements, yet it still had not launched commercially in the country. He also asked whether Ambani was “the real boss of India.”

India’s Ministry of Communications responded on October 8 that satellite-service rules are uniform and non-discriminatory. The ministry said three licensed operators were at broadly the same regulatory stage and undergoing security assessments. After those checks, they can move to the next step of seeking spectrum assignment.

A licence alone does not mean Starlink can begin commercial operations. The company has authorisations for satellite services, but launch still depends on completion of security checks and assignment of radio spectrum.

The Times of India report places the dispute within Gandhi’s wider criticism of corporate concentration. His call for a level playing field concerns the market more broadly, while the government’s statement addresses the specific approval process for satellite operators.