Apply for licence under Centre's 2020 guidelines by March 16: Bombay HC to aggregator cabs
India Today
The HC bench has given seven days to the aggregators to apply for a licence to the Regional Transport Authorities and another 10 days for the state to consider.
The Bombay High Court on Monday directed Ola, Uber and all similar aggregators to apply for valid licences by March 16 if they wish to continue operations.
“We are conscious that restraining aggregators, who have not yet obtained licences, will operate to prejudice and detriment of passengers who avail the services," Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Vinay Joshi of the Bombay HC said.
The central government had issued the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines, meant to regulate such cabs. However, the state government in Maharashtra was yet to formulate these rules. The court observed that those in the state are operating on the basis of permits issued to them under Maharashtra City Taxi Rules 2017. "What are you (aggregators) doing? This is complete lawlessness. You are not following the law. The law is very clear that as long as the state government does not have rules, you will have to follow the central government guidelines. We will stop you from plying," the bench said during the hearing.
The bench ordered that the Centre’s rules will be applicable till the Maharashtra Regulation of Aggregator Rules, 2021, which is pending approval, comes into effect.
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While dictating the order, the bench said, "We are pained to observe that despite the Central guidelines having been in place since 2020, the state government has permitted aggregators to function in Maharashtra without following the guidelines."
The bench has given seven days to the aggregators to apply for a licence to the Regional Transport Authorities (RTA) and another 10 days for the state to consider. The aggregators have been asked to approach the State Transport Appellate Tribunal if the RTAs reject their application. The court will further hear the case on March 28.
