• Diary number: SLP(C) 24566/2026, State of Karnataka Vs ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd

The Karnataka government has moved the Supreme Court by challenging a recent Karnataka High Court judgment that lifted the ban on bike taxi services in the state. The appeal, filed last week and yet to be listed for hearing, comes nearly three months after the High Court held that a blanket prohibition on bike taxis was contrary to the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. 

Respondents in the case:

• ANI Technologies Private Limited.
• Union of India, through the Principal Secretary, Transport Department.
• Varikruti Mahendra Reddy.
• Madhu Kiran.
• Uber India Systems Private Limited, through its authorised signatory.
• Bike Taxi Welfare Association, represented by its authorised signatory.
• Manoj M.
• Roppen Transportation Services Pvt. Ltd., through its Secretary.

What was the high court decision? In April 2025, a single-judge bench in the Karnataka High Court, Justice B.M. Shyam Prasad, directed aggregators such as Ola, Uber, and Rapido to halt bike taxi operations unless the Karnataka government framed rules under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Aggregators challenged the order before the court in July. 

On January 23, 2026, the Karnataka High Court allowed bike taxi services to operate in the state, subject to registration and permit requirements under the MVA, and set aside the earlier single-judge order that had halted operations by platforms such as Rapido, Uber, and Ola. The court directed authorities to register motorcycles as transport vehicles and grant contract carriage permits. 

However, it clarified that the Karnataka government retains the authority to regulate bike taxi operations and may impose additional conditions while issuing licences under the existing legal framework.

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