United States Senator Bernie Sanders has accused SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk of “oligarchy”, days after the billionaire made a similar charge while alleging “blocking” of Starlink's internet services in India.
Sanders said that Musk had spent $290 million during Donald Trump's presidential election campaign, a move which had “paid off” as the SpaceX CEO got “$696 billion richer.”
Musk had, last week in series of posts on X, questioned “no licence” to Starlink in India, claiming the company had complied with directions so far. India's ministry of communications rejected Musk's allegations, saying any suggestions that India’s regulatory framework or its application was discriminatory were “baseless and misconceived”.
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What did Bernie Sanders say?
Sanders, an independent Senator who caucuses with the Democrats, said in a post on X, “Elon Musk spent $290 million to elect Trump. It paid off. Since his election, Musk got $696 billion richer & became the world’s 1st trillionaire.”
{{/usCountry}}Sanders, an independent Senator who caucuses with the Democrats, said in a post on X, “Elon Musk spent $290 million to elect Trump. It paid off. Since his election, Musk got $696 billion richer & became the world’s 1st trillionaire.”
{{/usCountry}}He, however, added that this was “not enough”, while claiming that Musk was now “spending $366 million to keep Republicans in control of Congress.” “STOP MUSK. STOP OLIGARCHY,” Sanders added.
Musk's ‘oligarchs’ charge over Starlink
Sanders' statement comes not long after Musk had, in a post on X, alleged that Starlink was being “blocked” in India by “certain oligarchs” to protect their “monopolistic chokehold” over the country.
The SpaceX CEO had also responded to several posts, arguing that Starlink could fill “coverage gaps” in rural areas. “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!” Musk said.
Starlink, owned by Musk’s SpaceX, provides broadband internet using a constellation of low-Earth orbit satellites, allowing connectivity in areas where mobile networks can be difficult to reach. Starlink has received a government licence to provide satellite communication services in India, along with Eutelsat OneWeb and Jio Satellite Communications.
Also Read | Musk steps up Starlink push in India, says ‘competition would benefit average citizen’
However, as Union minister for communications Jyotiraditya Scindia highlighted earlier, all three firms still require spectrum allocation and security clearances before commercial services can begin.
How did India respond?
In a statement issued last week, the ministry of communications 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 has put in place a fair and non-discriminatory authorisation framework for all telecommunication services, including satellite communication services.”
The ministry said telecom licences had been granted to three companies offering GMPCS services using non-geosynchronous satellite orbits. “Security assessment as part of this process is currently under way in respect of all the three licensees,” it added. It said the three companies were at “broadly the same regulatory stage.”