The Delhi High Court today asked all app-based cab aggregators, including Ola and Uber, plying here to give details of their drivers and get their antecedents checked by police, saying safety of passengers can not be "compromised" with.
"I cannot compromise with the safety of passengers using taxi services in Delhi," Justice J R Midha said, asking Delhi government and police to check whether all drivers are driving taxis with valid licence.
"All taxi operators are directed to give details of their drivers along with their taxis registration numbers, details of driving licence within two weeks," the court said, adding that "we have to ensure that no passengers are harmed by any of the drivers in future."
"If someone comes from abroad to Delhi and hires a taxi and if a driver commits a crime, who will be held responsible? There should be some safeguard," the court observed.
On the basis of information given by taxi operators, it asked the authorities concerned to check the "criminal antecedents" of the drivers within two weeks thereafter.
To which, the counsel appearing for some of the app-based aggregators said they have no objection to it keeping in mind the safety of the public at large.
The court also asked the government to file an affidavit with regard to the status of its direction within four weeks.
The court, however, clarified that there should be no duplication of verification in cases where Delhi government has already carried out such exercise recently and granted licence to some of the operators to ply in Delhi.
"If they (all taxi operators) do not comply with the order of this court, Delhi government can move the court for further direction," the judge said and listed the matter for July 22.
The court's direction came during the hearing of a plea filed by Magic Sewa which has alleged that certain unlicensed taxi aggregators "have been disdainfully violating" government's notification on fares by charging very low amounts like Rs five per km or as high as Rs 38 per km.
The court had asked the government to convene a meeting with representatives of app-based cab operators, which are allegedly operating "illegally", to see if they are interested in getting fresh licence from the government.
The court, however, was today informed by the government
that a meeting was called but certain issues still remain to be clarified and they were going to bring a regulation which will cover all taxi operators.
Magic Sewa has said this was an urgent issue as during the ongoing odd-even car-rationing scheme, app-based taxi service operators were flouting fare rules and charging exorbitant fares.
It has alleged that unlicensed taxi aggregators "also charge the so-called 'peak time charge' or 'surge price' over and above the normal fares on a day and time of their own choosing. This 'peak time charge' or 'surge price' could be as high as five times the normal fare published by the unlicensed taxi aggregators".
It has also alleged that app-based cab companies were not complying with the City Taxi Scheme, 2015 or the fares notified under Motor Vehicles Act.
Ola and Uber, however, opposed the contention raised in the petition, saying they have all India permit licence and are not governed by Delhi government's scheme as this lies in the central government's domain.
Senior standing counsel Rahul Mehra, appearing for Delhi government, had said companies cannot be allowed to charge more than prescribed rates of fare in the shape of 'surge price' or 'peak time charge'.
He had further submitted that to "regulate auto rickshaws and taxi services, Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) under relevant provisions introduced a scheme called 'City Taxi Scheme 2015' vide notification dated August 26, 2015.
