Early versions of android did have a network permission. It was not able to be revoked but at least you knew apps that had no reason to require network access,

Early versions of android did have a network permission. It was not able to be revoked but at least you knew apps that had no reason to require network access, like early flashlight apps, were not exfiltrating data. The permission may still exist (it has been a long time since I last wrote an android app) but it is no longer user visible.