Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru

Bengaluru, Apr 2: The Karnataka High Court has granted a six-week window for Ola, Uber, and Rapido to cease their bike taxi operations in the state.

Justice B M Shyam Prasad delivered the ruling on Wednesday while disposing of petitions filed by Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd, ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd, and others seeking permission to register motorcycles as transport vehicles.

The court ruled that unless the state government formulates the necessary guidelines under Section 93 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and related rules, these aggregators cannot operate bike taxis. The Karnataka Transport Department has also been directed not to register motorcycles as transport vehicles.

The court acknowledged that Ola, Uber, and Rapido had been operating bike taxis under an interim order issued during the case. However, it made it clear that the companies must discontinue operations within six weeks, after which the state government has been instructed to ensure a complete ban on bike taxi services.

A request by one of the petitioners to stay the order until an appeal was filed was denied. The court clarified that the six-week period itself provides time for the companies to take appropriate steps.