Four cab drivers attached to several mobile-based cab aggregator platforms approached the Bombay High Court (HC) on Tuesday, challenging the Maharashtra government’s decision which mandates knowledge of Marathi for passenger transport drivers.
Filed through advocate Vivek Shukla, the petition is expected to be listed before the Chief Justice of the Bombay HC on Wednesday, seeking immediate directives, along with an immediate stay on the government notification.
A female traffic cop inspecting an autorickshaw driver's Marathi skills
The petition was filed after the state government announced a month-long statewide drive to assess the Marathi language skills of drivers. The state’s Transport Minister, Pratap Sarnaik notified the rule on August 12, 2026, saying the ones who drive the passenger transport vehicles must possess a working knowledge of Marathi, resulting in effective communication with commuters.
The petitioners have sought relief from the notification, contending that it could affect close to 9.65 lakh drivers across the state.
Drivers challenge rule under fundamental rights
The four cab drivers who filed the petition have argued that mandating Marathi violates their fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Indian Constitution.
AI-generated image
Article 14 guarantees citizens equality before the law, while Article 19 protects the freedom to carry on a trade or profession, while Article 21 safeguards the right to life and personal liberty. It was also contended in the plea that the state government’s notification is ultra vires the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, which does not prescribe any language requirement for obtaining a driving license.
The petition read, “The parent Act (Motor Vehicles Act) confers no power upon the State Government to prescribe working knowledge of any language as a qualification for a driver, as a condition of a badge, or as a condition of a permit, and confers no power to suspend or revoke a badge on such a ground.”
As per the plea, the government notification has given rise to a new disqualification and a new ground for the suspension of the driving license, which has not been enacted by Parliament.
Mumbai commuters suffer due to autorickshaw strike
The Marathi language row has also left the commuters across Mumbai in troubled waters, as the autorickshaw drivers launched a strike against the language requirement.
Mumbai's cabs and autorickshaws
Passengers faced numerous hurdles in reaching railway stations and workplaces as autorickshaws remained off the roads in areas such as Bandra, Kandivali, Govandi, Vakola, Kurla, Andheri and Santacruz.
Maharashtra CM intervenes
Videos of auto rickshaw drivers staging demonstrations at several localities in Mumbai emerged on social media, prompting Maharashtra Chief Minister (CM) Devendra Fadnavis to intervene.
CM Fadnavis said the government’s objective was not to make drivers expert in Marathi, but to ensure that they could communicate with commuters in the local language while carrying out their professional duties.
Maharashtra CM Fadnavis
Meanwhile, the regional transport offices (RTOs) across Maharashtra have served notices on 331 autorickshaw and cab drivers for allegedly failing to demonstrate a working knowledge of Marathi, as per a report by news agency PTI. Out of these, 139 were issued in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).
With the petition filed in this regard, the government’s Marathi language rule is expected to come under judicial scrutiny.