Smuggled Starlink devices allegedly used to defy India’s internet shutdowns
Civilian and armed groups in conflict-ridden state of Manipur using SpaceX’s satellite internet, sources say.
Elon Musk’s satellite-based Starlink – currently unlicensed for use in India – is being used by militant groups in the conflict-ridden state of Manipur to circumvent government internet shutdowns, fighters and security sources have said.
The satellite internet service provider, operated by Musk’s SpaceX company, is not permitted to legally operate in India amid security concerns but is allowed by Myanmar, which neighbours Manipur.
The north-east Indian state has been engulfed in a deadly conflict since May 2023 between the majority Meitei population and the minority Kuki population. More than 250 people have been killed and armed groups have formed on both sides as the state has become divided along ethnic lines.
As the state and national governments have failed to bring the security situation under control, they have repeatedly shut down all internet access across Manipur, often for months or weeks at a time.
But multiple sources within armed groups and the police confirmed to the Guardian that Starlink satellite internet worked in several areas of Manipur and had been used by individuals and militants groups during those periods when the government shut down mobile and broadband internet.
One leader from the Meitei separatist militant group, the People’s Liberation Army of Manipur (PLA), said that Starlink devices had been used by the group to access the internet inside Manipur when it had been cut by the authorities during flare-ups of violence.
The PLA source said the Starlink device had initially been used by the group in Myanmar but then members had realised it also functioned over the border in Manipur.
Musk has been vocal about his hopes to bring Starlink to India, a vast and growing market of 1.4 billion people, and in November the Indian government confirmed that Starlink was in the process of seeking necessary security permissions.
However, telecoms, including satellite internet, is one of the most strictly regulated industries in India and concerns have been raised by experts and thinktanks that Starlink could pose a security threat, or could be used to get around internet blackouts, which have become a regular mechanism of control by the Indian government and resulted in India having the highest number of internet shutdowns for the past seven years.
Officials from two different security agencies working in the state said it had recently been brought to their attention that Starlink devices had been used by civilians and armed groups to illegally access the internet in Manipur.
“Our initial information suggests that Starlink indeed works in some areas of Manipur, particularly in some areas that are closer to the Myanmar border,” said one senior police officer in Manipur, who said they believed the Starlink device they had recently uncovered had been smuggled in from Myanmar.
SpaceX, which operates Starlink, did not respond to a request for comment.
One person in Manipur’s state capital of Imphal, speaking on conditions of anonymity for fear of police action, said he had witnessed someone using a Starlink device brought over from the US during a wedding.
“The internet was working on it,” he said. “It was the period when the internet was turned off in our region. I was surprised to see the internet working when I connected my own phone.”
There is no confirmation on how many armed groups in Manipur have access to this technology. Four other armed groups – two from the Kuki side and one from the Meitei side – denied that they had been using Starlink to access the internet.
This is not the first incident of police encountering Starlink being used within Indian territory. In December, the Indian Coast Guard said they had found a Starlink device onboard a boat they had seized close to the Indian archipelago of Andaman and Nicobar, which was being used to smuggle an estimated £3bn worth of methamphetamine.
Police said they believed the device was being used for navigation and internet access in Indian waters and said they had reached out to Starlink for their assistance in the investigation.
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