Karnataka High Court Orders Bike Taxi Services to Cease Operations in Six Weeks
The court dismissed petitions from aggregators and gave the state government three months to draft regulations, leaving the future of bike taxis uncertain.
- Justice B Shyam Prasad of the Karnataka High Court ruled that bike taxi aggregators, including Rapido, Uber, and Ola, must halt operations within six weeks due to the absence of a regulatory framework.
- The court dismissed petitions seeking recognition of bike taxis as legal transport services and rejected requests to mandate registration of private two-wheelers as transport vehicles.
- The state government has been directed to draft regulations for bike taxi operations within three months, but the court emphasized it cannot compel regulatory action.
- Ride-hailing platforms have announced plans to appeal the decision, citing its impact on their business and the livelihoods of bike taxi drivers.
- The ruling follows protests by auto-rickshaw and cab drivers and highlights Karnataka's stricter stance compared to states like Delhi and Maharashtra, which have introduced conditional policies for bike taxis.
Hindustan Times 
Free Press Journal 
