Karnataka HC stays 5% cap on service fee for online autorickshaw-hailing
Bengaluru, Jan 4: The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday stayed the Transport Department notification, fixing a cap of 5 per cent on service charges collected by online aggregators for autorickshaw-hailing.
The notification issued on November 25, 2022, was challenged by the aggregators Ola and Uber. The earlier notification derecognising such service was challenged too.
The new notification came up after the intervention of the High Court, directing all stakeholders' views should be considered. Till then, the court allowed the aggregators to collect 10 per cent as a service fee.
The aggregators said they were incurring losses even if they collect 10 per cent and cited the Central government that approved a service fee of 20 per cent.
After issuing the stay today, Justice CM Poonacha said the court would hear out the petition along with the main petition regarding the aggregator licence for such autorickshaw-hailing.
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BJP's main agenda is to keep minorities in fear, alleges Stalin
Chennai (PTI): DMK President M K Stalin has alleged that the BJP's main agenda is to keep the minorities in fear, and everyone is aware of what is happening in the states governed by the saffron party.
Stalin further alleged that Muslims continued to be subjected to attacks.
"Now, a situation has arisen where even Christmas could not be celebrated peacefully. Christians are being targeted. The entire country is a witness to what is happening in Manipur. The BJP's plan of action is that a state of insecurity for minorities should spread like a wildfire across the country," he told PTI in an interview.
That was why it first enacted the CAA, and the next was an amendment to the Waqf law, and now it is "desperate" to amend the FCRA, he alleged, and lashed out at AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami.
"Palaniswami, who supports all these three amendments and has formed an alliance with the BJP, does not have any concern for the welfare of minorities. However, the DMK is always firm in its commitment to ensure that India must always be a secular state; that people belonging to all religions must be equally respected and that the Constitutional safeguards conferred on minorities must be upheld. If any of these is threatened, the DMK will be the first party to raise its voice against it," he said.
Denying that the BJP made the minorities feel insecure, BJP state vice president M Chakravarthy said the chief minister was making the allegation due to the "fear that the Christian and Dalit votes would go to Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam led by actor-politician Vijay."
He was depicting the BJP as a bogeyman in an attempt to create unnecessary apprehension among the minorities, the BJP leader told PTI.
On FCRA, Chakravarthy asked, "What's wrong with ensuring accountability in the use of funds?"
