HC sends notice to Delhi government on Uber's plea

While refusing to offer an interim relief to the US-based Uber taxi service to ply on the city's roads, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday issued notice to the Delhi government.

Justice Mukta Gupta issued notice to Delhi government and police while hearing a plea of the taxi company challenging the rejection of its application for licence to ply on the city's roads.

Uber India Technology Pvt. Ltd. approached the court against a June 3 order of the Delhi government to deny extension of its licence to operate radio cabs in the national capital.

Refusing to grant any interim relief to Uber, the court posted the matter for hearing on July 8 and told Uber that in the absence of a licence, it could not ply taxis on Delhi roads.

Delhi's transport authority on June 3 rejected the licence applications of Uber, citing violation of ban orders imposed by the government last year.

Last December, the Delhi government banned Uber taxi services after a 27-year-old MNC executive was raped in a taxi allegedly by an Uber driver.

Senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, appearing for Uber, told the court that in a similar case filed by two other companies, Apra Cabs India Pvt Ltd and Serendipity Infolabs Pvt. Ltd (Taxi for Sure), whose applications for licence was rejected by the Delhi government on June 3, another bench had quashed the rejection of licence application last week.

Justice Gupta, however, refused to grant same relief and sought government's and police response.