Apple wants to sell smartphones in India and take a piece of the cake there, but that is proving to be tougher than expected. The company hoped to attract Indian customers by selling refurbished devices, but India's government has rejected Apple's proposal.

Since most of the smartphones in India sell for less than $150, not many people would pay $700 for a new iPhone. The company also requested to be exempt from the current regulation that requires 30% of the devices to be produced in India if Apple wants to open branded stores, which was denied.

"We are not in favour of any company selling used phones in the country, however certified they may be" commerce and industry minister Nirmala Sitharaman said at a press conference.