Supreme Court has provided an extension to the Delhi Government to finalize the Delhi Motor Vehicle Aggregator and Delivery Service Provider Scheme, 2023 aimed at regulating two-wheeler aggregators. The time extension, granted by a division bench comprising Justice Aniruddha Bose and Justice Bela M. Trivedi, now extends the deadline to September 30th.

Initially, the Delhi Government had aimed to notify the policy by July 31st, 2023, as previously stated with an "emphatic stand." However, the Court noted that despite being served, Rapido (Roppen Transportation Services Private Limited) was absent during the proceedings, while Uber was present and did not object to the time extension.

During the hearing, Justice Bose raised concerns about the delay and questioned the government's reason for it. The government's counsel responded that a comprehensive policy was being developed, which was taking additional time.

The delay comes after the Supreme Court had previously stayed an order by the Delhi High Court allowing bike-taxi aggregators, Rapido and Uber, to operate without aggregator licenses until the Delhi Government's policy was in place. The High Court's interim order was contested by the aggregators, leading to the Supreme Court's intervention.

The dispute arises from the Delhi Government's issuance of a public notice on February 19, 2023, which prohibited the use of two-wheelers by aggregators due to the lack of proper licenses or permits. This notice was challenged by Rapido and Uber, resulting in the High Court's interim order. The Delhi Government argued that this interim order allowed the aggregators to continue operating non-transport vehicles without valid permits, which contradicted the Motor Vehicles Act and Aggregator Guidelines.

The Supreme Court's recent decision grants the Delhi Government additional time to finalize and notify the regulatory scheme, ensuring proper compliance with existing laws and guidelines.

Case Title: Government Of NCT Of Delhi v. Roppen Transportation Services Pvt. Ltd. MA 1740/2023 in C.A. No. 4039/2023