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.
It paid off. “STOP MUSK. STOP OLIGARCHY,” Sanders added. The Government has put in place a fair and non-discriminatory authorisation framework for all telecommunication services, including satellite communication services. But that’s not enough.
Sanders, an independent Senator who caucuses with the Democrats, said in a post on X, “Elon Musk spent $290 million to elect Trump. Since his election, Musk got $696 billion richer & became the world’s 1st trillionaire. Earlier reporting noted: US Senator Bernie Sanders has criticised Elon Musk for spending $366 million to support Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections, pointing to the tech billionaire’s sharp rise in wealth since backing President Donald Trump’s election campaign. Earlier reporting noted: Sanders said Musk had spent $290 million to help elect Trump and had since become $696 billion richer, becoming the world’s first trillionaire. He added that Musk was now spending $366 million to help Republicans retain control of Congress. Earlier reporting noted: “Elon Musk spent $290 million to elect Trump. Now, Musk is spending $366 million to keep Republicans in control of Congress.
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”. He, however, added that this was “not enough”, while claiming that Musk was now “spending $366 million to keep Republicans in control of Congress. 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. 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 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. STOP OLIGARCHY,” Sanders said in a post on X.
