Web cab service: HC to hear petition on Feb 5

Tribune News Service

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Chandigarh, January 5

The Chandigarh Administration’s decision to apply brakes to the web-based cab service in the city has come under the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s lens.

Taking up a petition in this regard filed by V-Link Automotive Services Private Limited against the Administration and other respondents, the Bench of Justice Satish Kumar Mittal and Justice Deepak Sibal today fixed February 5 as the next date of hearing. The court has already issued notices to the UT Administration and other respondents.

In the petition, the company through counsel Akshay Bhan challenged the impugned order issued by the UT State Transport Authority (STA)holding that its web-based cab service was without prior approval of the competent authority.

The impugned order said the Union Ministry of Home Affairs made it clear that the operation of the web-based taxi service was not to be permitted.

Referring to the order, the Punjab and Haryana High Court, on a previous date of hearing, had observed that the issue “obtained national attention as a sequel to serious incidents of sexual violence in an internationally renowned cab service, which did not conform to the NCT Regulation of Radio Taxi Scheme 2006.

“The web-based service is perceived to be not sufficiently safe for a passenger. While a radio taxi has licence model with the government, web-based cab services are not registered. They also lack safety measures such GPS/GPRS system and are not fully equipped with 24x7 call centres.

Justice K Kannan had added: “The instructions from the Home Ministry addresses a national concern for the safety of the passengers in taxi services run in major cities, where the users are young persons and who may be compelled, on account of working hours, to avail of such services late night and when there is no traffic or human movement. The issue raised in this writ petition, in my view, is of utmost of public importance that would require to be considered by a larger bench.”