FIR Filed Against Rapido in Pune Over Unauthorised Bike-Taxi Rides
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Vishrantwadi, 17th October 2026: Pune city police have registered a case against Roppen Transportation Services Pvt Ltd, which operates the Rapido app, over allegations that it arranged passenger rides on petrol-powered motorcycles registered as non-transport vehicles without the required permissions.
The FIR, registered on October 16 as Case No. 0517/2026, names the company as an accused. It cites Section 318(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita; Sections 66, 93, 192A, 193 and 197 of the Motor Vehicles Act; and Section 66(D) of the Information Technology Act. The case has been taken up for investigation by Inspector Sampatrao Sahebrao Raut.
The complaint was lodged by a Motor Vehicle Inspector, Prasad Survase, with the Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO). He alleges that Rapido used its app to facilitate rides on motorcycles registered for non-transport use, without the necessary government or transport-authority permission.
He further alleges that the arrangement bypassed transport rules and raised passenger-safety concerns. These are allegations recorded in the FIR and have not been established in court.
Ride booking and enforcement action
According to the inspector’s statement, a Rapido app booking was made at about 6.44 pm on October 16 for a ride from Commerce Zone in Yerawada to Kothrud Bus Depot. The app showed a distance of about 13 km and a fare of ₹179.
The complaint says a petrol-powered TVS motorcycle arrived at about 6.50 pm. The inspector, who was on duty with a road-safety enforcement team, says officials questioned the rider, took the motorcycle into custody and issued a challan under the Motor Vehicles Act. The vehicle was then taken to Vishrantwadi Police Station.
Regulatory history cited in the complaint
The inspector’s statement recounts earlier regulatory and court proceedings concerning Rapido’s operations. He says an RTO decision rejecting the company’s application was issued in December 2022, followed by a Bombay High Court order in January 2023 directing the company to stop operating its app. He also says the company’s subsequent special leave petition in the Supreme Court was dismissed and that an application for an aggregator licence, made in August 2023, was not granted.
The inspector further refers to a notice issued in April 2025 and says that, at a meeting on October 15, 2026, officials directed the company to stop bike-taxi operations in Pune until it obtained the necessary permission.
He says an office order issued the following day instructed officials to act against unauthorised passenger transport arranged through the app.
Note: Response from Rapido will be added after it is received.
