As many as 36 cases were registered in the State in connection with disputes between drivers of taxi aggregators and local taxi services during 2015-17, according to an affidavit filed by State Police Chief Loknath Behra in the Kerala High Court.
In an affidavit filed in response to a court directive in a contempt of court case, State Police Chief said that of the 36 cases, indictment came in 20 cases, fine were imposed in four cases, one case was dropped and remaining 14 cases were under investigation.
The police in Kannur, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Kochi, and Ernakulam rural had strengthened patrolling and beat duty at bus stands and railway stations from where online tax services were actively operated.
Besides, awareness programmes with the help of trade unions were being conducted among local taxi/ auto service drivers to avoid any conflict between them. No untoward incidents had been reported in other parts of the State except in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Kozhikode, and Ernakulam rural area limits.
The police were taking all effective measures to maintain law and order and protect the genuine rights of online taxi providers, the affidavit said.
The court had earlier directed the State Police Chief to file an affidavit regarding the implementation of its directive to provide police protection to online taxi drivers in different parts of the State. The directive was given when a contempt of court petition filed by online taxi drivers in Kochi city came up for hearing. According to the petition, the police were not implementing the court directive on police protection.
