The Karnataka high court on Friday said it has not permitted private aggregators to operate bike taxis in the state. It said the government was free to act against the aggregators but cautioned that individuals must not be harassed.
A bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice CM Joshi said this after advocate general Shashi Kiran Shetty, representing the Karnataka government, informed the court that bike taxi aggregator apps had resumed operations in Bengaluru. Shetty said this followed an earlier hearing where the court orally suggested that the government give the matter “serious thought,” noting that the livelihoods of several people were “at stake”. The state banned bike taxis in Karnataka on June 16.
The bench said it had not issued any protection to bike taxi aggregators and that the state was free to take action as long as such action was in accordance with the law. “We have given no orders. If they have started their business, you can take whatever action you want. We only said don’t take precipitative action against individual taxi owners. As far as aggregators are concerned, we have given no observations. Since you are considering a larger policy, at least individuals who are operating, you will not precipitate against them,” the court said.
On July 20, the Karnataka government informed the high court that the state did not have a policy on the bike taxis and it intended to take a “conscious” and holistic decision on the issue. The submission came after the court questioned its rationale behind a complete ban on bike taxis, instead of regulating them.
{{/usCountry}}On July 20, the Karnataka government informed the high court that the state did not have a policy on the bike taxis and it intended to take a “conscious” and holistic decision on the issue. The submission came after the court questioned its rationale behind a complete ban on bike taxis, instead of regulating them.
{{/usCountry}}The court had noted that the Karnataka government had prohibited even battery-operated bike taxis, which were regulated by a state policy until 2014, and had thus banned a “legitimate trade.” It observed that bike taxis were not a luxury but an essential and affordable mode of last-mile transportation. The court suggested that the state consider regulating bike taxis instead of prohibiting them.
The bench was hearing appeals of private bike taxi aggregators such as Ola, Uber, and Rapido, and local bike taxi unions against a single judge’s order in April this year, halting their operations. The government has maintained that bike taxis are unsafe for passengers and add to the traffic woes.