SHC hears Careem cab service case, issues notices

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court began hearing a case regarding the Careem taxi service on Friday and issued notices to parties in the case for February 9.

A petition was filed against the taxi service, saying that its drivers did not own licenses for commercial services. It added that the Careem taxi service was violating the Motor Vehicle Ordinance.

The petitioner has requested the state to take action against the cab service.

The Sindh government has declared the use of private cars as taxis without the mandatory legal permits as “illegal” and has contacted PTA as it seeks to block Careem’s mobile app.

Transport Secretary Taha Farooqui said in a statement that he wrote five letters to Careem management as a warning but received no reply.

The provincial government has also initiated action against Uber to bring the app within ‘official compliance’.

Managing Director (MD) Careem Pakistan, Junaid Iqbal in a statement issued on social media on Tuesday evening, appealed to the governments of Sindh, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with the respective chief ministers, to embrace the concept of ride-hailing as it will create hundreds of thousands of jobs and pave the way for more ‘hailing’ industries.

Careem is a platform that connects a ride provider and a ride hailer together through its mobile application.