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A Supreme Court bench of Justices Nageshwar Rao and Gavai today granted status quo on the order of Bombay High Court dated March 7,2022 directing cab aggregator Uber to obtain necessary licenses under the Motor Vehicle aggregator guidelines in order to operate in Maharashtra. The High Court asked the aggregators to apply for the same by March 16, 2022.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had in 2020 in issued Motor Vehicle Aggregators Guidelines, 2020 in order to regulate the cab aggregator market. The Guidelines were issued to will serve as a guiding framework for State Governments. The guidelines further provide for  ease of doing business, customer safety and driver welfare

A Bombay High Court Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice MS Karnik remarked “We are pained to observe that despite the central guidelines having been in place since 2020, the state government has permitted the aggregators to function in Maharashtra without following the guidelines. We grant the opportunity to all such aggregators to apply for a license by March 16, as required by Section 1 (93) of the Act before the competent authority empowered by the state government to issue licenses.”

The high court directed the above in a plea Adv. Savina Crasto highlighting the lack of an effective grievance redressal mechanism for customers using the Uber India app to use their cab services. She cited an incident from November 2020, when she booked an Uber ride in the city and was dropped off mid-way at a shady dark place. She then found that the Uber app had no effective option for lodging complaints.

When the matter came up for hearing today, Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Sr. Adv, appearing for Uber India, argued that the validity of the guidelines are being challenged by the company and that the company further has apprehensions about how the guidelines will be appropriate. He further argued that since the Bombay High Court has passed an order Uber to comply with  guidelines, the company cannot challenge the same now. He further pointed out that the State government is yet come out with any guidelines with respect to aggregators and that the court had directed the state to frame the guidelines by a certain date. It was argued that the court cannot undertake such a legislative exercise.

The bench on hearing his submissions ordered status quo in the matter and informed that it will list it in 2 or 3 weeks.

Case title: Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd Vs Union of India