Elon Musk Escalates Attack on Mukesh Ambani, Shares Media Reports Alleging Reliance Links to BJP Funding
Elon Musk continued his attack on Indian industrialist Mukesh Ambani on Saturday with a new post on X. He shared screenshots of media reports alleging that a Reliance-funded organisation helped boost BJP campaigns on social media. The post also claimed that a Reliance-linked company made large political donations to the BJP.
What Musk’s post shows
The post carries an Al Jazeera report from 2022 headlined “How a Reliance-funded firm boosts BJP’s campaigns on Facebook”. It also shows an archived Indian Express report from 2024 on Qwik Supply, which claimed that the Reliance-linked firm donated Rs 385 crore to the BJP and Rs 25 crore to the Shiv Sena through electoral bonds.
Starlink delay at the centre of the row
The latest post follows a wave of sharp criticism from Musk aimed at Ambani over the continuing delay in the rollout of Starlink satellite broadband services in India. Reliance has chosen not to respond publicly to Musk’s allegations. The government has continued to maintain that India’s authorisation framework for telecom and satellite services is “fair and non-discriminatory”. It has dismissed any suggestion that the framework is applied selectively as “baseless and misconceived”.
Akash Ambani stays out of the controversy
The exchange played out during the India Mobile Congress this week. While Musk’s jabs and confrontations unfolded on X alongside the country’s flagship telecom showcase, Reliance Jio Infocomm Chairman Akash Ambani stayed away from the controversy. He said the company remained focused on delivering value to Indian consumers rather than joining the debate over satellite communication services.
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Scindia responds
Hours before the latest post, Musk had referred to Mukesh Ambani on X as “Prime Minister Ambani”. He accused him of shielding a monopoly and asked whether Ambani would ever allow Starlink to compete on equal terms in India.
Responding on Friday, Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said India does not tolerate monopolies in any sector. He pointed out that, despite the attention on one company, three players currently hold satcom licences and are free to begin operations once they clear the required security checks and milestones.