Karnataka Bike Taxi Drivers Urge Government For Ban Reversal

A group of bike taxi drivers in Karnataka met Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao and MLA S Muniraju, requesting help to stop the crackdown on bike taxis.

After the meeting, they also wrote open letters to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, and MP Rahul Gandhi—but received no response.

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This comes after the Karnataka High Court banned bike taxi services in April. Following the order, platforms like rapido, ola, and Uber were directed to stop operations by June 15.

On June 16, all three companies officially halted their bike taxi services in the state.

Mohammed Salim from the Namma Bike Taxi Association said that, along with approaching political leaders, they have also filed a petition urging the state government to set clear policies for bike taxi services in Karnataka.

“…We’re not asking for favours, we’re asking for the right to work legally and safely…,” said Salim. 

Salim also mentioned that around 100 bike taxi riders were stopped by auto unions from protesting at Freedom Park. “We reached out to the police and authorities, but they refused us permission to protest, likely due to pressure from the auto unions,” he said.

According to the association, the ban has affected around 1.5 lakh riders in Karnataka. “It’s ironic that the same bike is allowed to deliver food but becomes illegal when used as a taxi,” Salim added.

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