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The Supreme Court on Monday directed Uber to apply for a license under the Motor Vehicle Amendment Act (MVA) within a period of three weeks to continue its operation as an aggregator in Maharashtra.
A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala ordered Uber India Services Private Ltd to apply for a license by March 6, 2023. The apex court said that its earlier interim order by which it had allowed Uber to operate in the State would not hold, since an aggregator cannot operate without a license. "We are of the view that interim order permitting them to operate without license cannot stand, as an aggregator cannot work in absence of a license. Uber to apply for a license within a period of three weeks, on or before March 6, 2023," the bench said. Earlier, the top court in an interim order in April 2022 directed the status quo on the Bombay High Court order that asked Uber India to comply with Motor Vehicle Aggregator (MVA) guidelines issued by the Central government. Uber India Services Private Ltd had approached the top court against the High Court's order directing cab aggregators to comply with MVA Guidelines 2020. Uber had said the State government was yet to finalise its guidelines with respect to cab aggregators and the authorities competent to issue licenses to aggregators were yet to be notified. In its order, the High Court observed that app-based taxi firms such as Ola and Uber operating in Maharashtra without valid licenses were an instance of "complete lawlessness" and Court had directed all such aggregators to apply for valid licenses by March 16, 2022 if they wish to continue operations. The High Court order had come on a PIL filed by advocate Savina R Crasto highlighting the lack of an effective grievance redressal mechanism for customers using the Uber India app and seeking implementation of the Guidelines. (ANI)
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