Day after Karnataka High Court questions blanket ban, bike taxis back on roads

Bengaluru: Bike taxis returned to Bengaluru and other cities on Thursday, a day after the High Court of Karnataka questioned the blanket ban on the service. 

The sudden move caught the Transport Department off guard, as it scrambled to review the proceedings from Wednesday's hearing. 

Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy called the resumption "a violation" of the court order, while officials said ride-hailing firms had "misinterpreted" the court's oral observations. 

At the hearing, the state had told the court that a "conscious" decision on framing a bike taxi policy would be taken at the highest level in the government. 

The court had orally asked the government to give the policy "a serious thought" "because lives are at stake". The next hearing is on September 22. 

Ride-hailing firms have appealed against a single-judge order, which has disallowed bike taxi services in Karnataka since June 16. 

Ride-hailing firms Rapido, Uber and OLA were quick to reintroduce bike taxi services on Thursday. 

While Rapido was the first to relaunch it early morning, Uber followed soon after. Ola brought it back later in the day. 

Rapido even ran a promotional campaign on the app, advertising bike taxis as an "affordable and quick" option. Both Rapido and Uber provided a promotional discount on the service. 

An informed source from the industry said Rapido's decision complelled other companies to resume the service despite the risk of violating the court order. 

Reddy slammed the platforms for their "hasty actions". "The court has given us a month to decide if we want to frame a bike taxi policy. Nowhere did it permit bike taxis to ply immediately. The platforms are clearly violating the court order," he told DH. 

Transport Secretary N V Prasad said legal opinion had been sought, while another high-ranking official declined to say whether a policy would be introduced. 

A source in the department said the firms' actions would certainly be brought to the court's notice. 

"Nowhere did the court allow services to resume or restrain us from taking coercive action," the source maintained. 

Another well-placed source questioned the need for bike taxis in Karnataka, specifically Bengaluru. "We have robust public transportation. Initially, we had allowed e-bike taxis, but the ride aggregator platforms even flouted those rules," he said. 

Auto driver and private transport associations also came forward to protest the return of bike taxis. 

Rapido, Uber and OLA did not respond to queries seeking comment. 

Drivers overjoyed

Unaware of the legal drama, bike taxi drivers welcomed the return of the service, believing it to be a ruling in their favour. 

"I got to know that bike taxis were back early morning through a WhatsApp group. We were informed that the court has ruled in favour of bike taxis. I was overjoyed and immediately set out on duty. Since bike taxis were banned, I had moved to food delivery apps but earnings were not good. I had to take a loan to pay my children's school fee," a 38-year-old bike taxi driver said. 

By Thursday afternoon, he completed five rides.