Overview

• Uber and Ola removed bike taxi options from their apps in Bengaluru on August 25 after the court confirmed it had not permitted aggregators to resume.
• Rapido introduced a feature called Bike Direct that it describes as a non-profit tool to connect riders with customers, with its legal status unclear.
• A division bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C. M. Joshi orally clarified that authorities were only asked to avoid precipitative action against individual owners or drivers.
• Earlier rulings held bike taxis unlawful in Karnataka without a state regulatory framework, and the court has not granted interim relief to platforms.
• The court asked the state to state its policy intentions, as driver groups call the prolonged suspension a livelihood crisis for thousands who relied on the service.