Karnataka Moves SC Against High Court Order Backing Bike Taxis

The Karnataka government has moved the Supreme Court (SC) against the Karnataka High Court’s (HC) January 23 order, which allowed bike taxi operations in the state, escalating the legal battle over services offered by platforms such as Ola, Uber, and Rapido.

The special leave petition (SLP) was filed on April 22 by the State of Karnataka, along with several transport department officials — including the Commissioner of Road and Transport Department, the Karnataka State Transport Authority, the Commissioner for Transport, and the Department of Home — against Ola parent ANI Technologies Private Limited, Uber India Rapido, and the Bike Taxi Welfare Association. 

The Bar and Bench was the first to report the development. 

In the January order, the Karnataka HC bench, led by Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru, officiated bike taxis as a legal means of transportation and directed the state government to issue permits for their operation as contract carriages with yellow number plates. 

The order had brought relief to nearly 6 Lakh bike taxi riders and aggregators, whose services had remained paused due to the legal turmoil since April 2025. 

Observing that operating taxis is a legitimate business protected under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, the bench held that bike taxi services were neither inherently dangerous nor illegal. 

It also directed operators to apply for registration of two-wheelers as transport vehicles or contract carriages, stating that the state could not reject applications solely because the vehicle was a motorcycle. 

The dispute dates back to 2019, when aggregators such as Ola, Uber, and Rapido began facing regulatory hurdles as the Karnataka government either rejected licence requests or refused renewals for bike taxi operations. 

The state government has consistently maintained that bike taxis should not be permitted, arguing that only four-wheelers qualify as taxis under existing rules. It has cited passenger safety concerns, traffic congestion, pollution, and the availability of public transport as key reasons behind its policy decision. It also suggested that motorcyclists could instead register as delivery partners under the Gig Workers Act. 

In its SLP, the state government has reportedly argued that allowing motorcycles to operate as taxis falls within the state’s policy discretion. Thus, it claimed that the HC overstepped its jurisdiction by directing registration and permitting operations, calling it a case of “judicial legislation.” 

It has also maintained that restricting bike taxis is a policy decision rooted in public safety concerns. 

Interestingly, even as it challenges the HC ruling, the Karnataka government is reportedly considering a separate policy to legalise bike taxi services in the state. A senior government official told the ET that the SLP focuses only on “technical flaws” in the January judgment and does not prevent the government from framing a future policy.

The clarification came after the Bike Taxi Welfare Association wrote to chief minister Siddaramaiah on April 21, expressing concerns over policy delays and stating that the uncertainty had pushed riders into “a state of despair.” 

The issue continues to remain contentious across states, despite the Centre updating the Motor Vehicles Aggregator Guidelines in 2020 to allow bike taxis. However, the final decision on permitting such services continues to rest with individual state governments.

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