Elon Musk has confirmed that Starlink, the satellite internet service owned by his company SpaceX, is not operational in India. His statement follows the recent seizure of two Starlink devices by Indian authorities in separate incidents involving an armed conflict zone and a drug smuggling operation, according to a recent report by Reuters.

Responding on X (formerly Twitter) to a post by the Indian Army, Musk stated on December 17 that "Starlink satellite beams are turned off over India" and were "never on in the first place." The post he replied to included photos from a search operation in Manipur, a northeastern Indian state that has experienced ongoing communal conflict since early 2023. Among the items seized were weapons and a satellite dish bearing the Starlink logo.

As per the Reuters report, military officials indicated that the Starlink device was allegedly being used by a militant group in the region. They suggested that it might have been smuggled in through the border with Myanmar, a country grappling with civil unrest.

In a separate incident earlier this month, Indian police seized a Starlink device during a maritime drug bust. Authorities discovered the equipment alongside $4.2 billion worth of methamphetamine, marking one of the country's largest drug hauls. 

Starlink is currently seeking regulatory approval to provide satellite broadband services in India.