Elon Musk: Starlink Not Active In India After Two Devices Confiscated

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk (photo: x @DimaZeniuk)

JAKARTA SpaceX CEO Elon Musk revealed that the Starlink satellite internet service was inactive in India. This statement came after authorities seized two Starlink devices in recent weeks, one in armed conflict areas and others in drug smuggling operations.

Starlink is currently seeking approval to provide satellite internet services in India. As part of the process, Elon Musk's company is trying to address potential security concerns from local authorities.

In a post on platform X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday night, December 17, Musk wrote that "the Starlink satellite signal was shut down in India" and that the device "was never active there from the start."

Musk's statement was in response to an upload from the Indian Army regarding a search operation on December 13 in Manipur state, a communal conflict area in northeastern India that had been going on since the beginning of last year. In the upload, photos of the weapons seized with antenna devices and receivers bearing the Starlink logo can be seen.

Two military officials involved in the operation, who spoke anonymously, said the Starlink device was allegedly used by militant groups. They expect the device to be smuggled through a porous border with neighboring Myanmar, which is currently being hit by civil war.

Media has reported the use of Starlink devices by rebel groups in Myanmar, although the company does not operate its services in the country.

In the case of Drug Smuggling Earlier this month, Indian police sent a lawsuit to Starlink regarding details of the purchase of the device found when they arrested smugglers at sea with a methamphetamine worth US$4.2 billion. The arrests became one of India's largest smuggling cases.

Police suspect the smugglers used the internet equipment for navigation at sea.

Starlink continues to face challenges in its efforts to enter the Indian market, with security concerns being the government's main concern.