Elon Musk says Starlink satellite beams are 'turned off over India’; here's what happened

SpaceX founder Elon Musk has said that said Starlink satellite beams were turned off over India. His post came as reaction to claims that the Starlink device was being used in violence hit Manipur.

The security forces recently seized some internet devices along with arms and ammunition during a raid in Keirao Khunou in Imphal East district. The Spear Corps of the Indian Army also shared photos of the items on X, and social media users were quick to note that one of the devices had a "Starlink logo" on it.

On December 16, the security forces posted on X, “Acting on specific intelligence, troops of #IndianArmy and #AssamRifles formations under #SpearCorps carried out joint search operations in the hill and valley regions in the districts of Churachandpur, Chandel, Imphal East and Kagpokpi in #Manipur, in close coordination with @manipur_police and other security forces and recovered 29 weapons comprising of snipers, automatic weapons, rifles, pistols, country made mortars, single barrel rifles, grenades, ammunition and war like stores.”

Commenting on the post, one user said, “@Starlink is being used by terrorists. Hope, Elon @elonmusk looks into it and help control misuse of this technology.”

On this, Musk then responded and said, “This is false. Starlink satellite beams are turned off over India.”

According to Reuters, two military officers who were familiar with search requested anonymity and revealed that a device bearing the Starlink logo was being utilised by a militant group during the search operation. They added that the device was likely smuggled through the porous border with neighbouring Myanmar. They further added that the use of Starlink devices by rebel groups has been documented in media reports although the company does not operate in Myanmar either.

Meanwhile, Musk's Starlink, which provides satellite internet services, does not have a licence to operate in India. In Manipur, over 250 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups since May last year.

Earlier on December 3, Reuters had also reported that Indian police would seek details from Elon Musk's Starlink in a bid to hunt down drug smugglers who used its satellite internet device to navigate deep seas and bring meth worth $4.25 billion into Indian waters for the first time.

(With inputs from Reuters)