NEW DELHI: In a relief for cab aggregator
Uber, the
Delhi high court has stayed proceedings in a criminal complaint lodged against the
taxi service provider for allegedly operating taxis without licence and charging excess fare from passengers.
Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva stayed the proceedings in the case came on Uber’s plea seeking quashing of the complaint and the summons issued to it in the matter by a trial court.
The court also issued notice to the NGO Nyay Bhoomi, which had lodged the complaint, and sought its response to the company’s petition by August 20. The NGO, which claims to represent the interests of autorickhaw drivers, had lodged the complaint against both Uber and ANI Technologies, which provides cab services under the name of Ola.
In its complaint, it sought recovery of Rs 91,000 crore from the two app-based taxi
service providers for allegedly overcharging passengers. Ola too had earlier approached
HC seeking quashing of the complaint and the summons issued to it by the trial court on July 31 last year and had got a stay in March this year.
Both companies, which are rivals, had alleged in their quashing plea that the complaint against them by Nyay Bhoomi is at the behest of a competitor, Magic Sewa. They also maintained the companies are not an agent or canvasser as alleged in the complaint against them and sought an end to the cases.
The cab aggregators argued they are “service providers on an electronic platform facilitating booking of radio cabs/e-cabs, in respect of which there are no provisions framed under the Motor Vehicles Act”.
They also told the high court that a bill has been introduced in the Parliament seeking to regulate the services being provided by them. In fact, another bench of HC is monitoring efforts by the government to regulate these aggregators.
HC had in August 2016 directed that after August 22, 2016, taxi aggregators or operators shall not charge fare more than the cap stipulated in the Delhi government's June 2013 notification.
File Photo