Karnataka Bike Taxi Ban: Transport Minister Orders Authorities To Enforce HC Directive To Halt Illegal Operations

Karnataka Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Friday instructed officials to enforce the High Court’s directive to halt bike taxi services across the state within six weeks. The move targets major aggregators like Uber, Ola and Rapido, who provide bike taxi services in several major cities of Karnataka such as Bengaluru and Mengaluru.

In a letter to Transport Commissioner Yogesh AM and Principal Secretary Dr NV Prasad, Reddy emphasised immediate action. He noted that the High Court had granted Uber India Systems, Roppen Transportation Services and ANI Technologies six weeks to cease bike taxi operations, and directed the department to ensure strict implementation of the order.

The directive follows the April 2 ruling by Justice Shyam Prasad, which prohibited bike taxi services unless the state officially notifies regulations under Section 93 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. In the absence of such guidelines, the court deemed bike taxi operations illegal.

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A transport department official confirmed that compliance actions would begin after May 14, marking the end of the six-week period. The Karnataka Transport Department had earlier announced stronger enforcement, instructing Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) to form special squads to identify and penalise illegal bike taxi operators, particularly in Bengaluru.

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The ruling has significantly impacted companies like Rapido, which claims around 1.2 lakh active riders in Bengaluru alone. Meanwhile, pressure from auto-rickshaw and cab driver unions, who recently staged massive protests against unauthorised bike taxi operations, has further accelerated government action.