Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court yesterday permitted the operation of bike taxis, while allowing the appeals filed by bike taxi aggregators, individual bike taxi owners and others.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C.M. Joshi directed the State Government to register motorcycles as transport vehicles and grant contract carriage permits.

The Bench held that while the transport authorities are not precluded from examining relevant aspects relating to vehicle registration and issuance of permits, they cannot deny registration or permits on the ground that motorcycles cannot be operated as transport or contract carriage vehicles.

The Regional Transport Authority may, however, impose conditions attached to the permits in accordance with law, the Bench clarified.

The appeals were filed by Uber India Systems Pvt. Ltd., Roppen Transportation Services Pvt. Ltd. and ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd., challenging a single-Judge order which had ruled that bike taxi services could not operate unless the Government notified guidelines under Section 93 of the Motor Vehicles Act and the relevant Rules.