Bombay High Court to hear PIL against Marathi rule for drivers

A Public Interest Litigation has been filed on Tuesday (August 25, 2026) in the Bombay High Court against the Maharashtra government’s decision to make working knowledge of Marathi compulsory for auto-rickshaw, taxi, and app-based cab drivers.

The petition challenges the August 12 notification of the Home (Transport) Department, which amended the Maharashtra Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 to include this condition for licence grants, renewals, and permit holders.

The PIL is likely to be mentioned before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge on Wednesday (August 26, 2026). The petitioners include four civil rights groups and individuals.

The plea argues that the State has treated citizens from other states as outsiders, violating Articles 19(1)(d), 19(1)(e), and the constitutional scheme of single citizenship. The petitioners state that they hold Marathi in respect and do not oppose the language’s promotion.

Many of them speak and understand functional Marathi in their daily work. However, they contend that language cannot be enforced by suspending licences and removing livelihoods. They also argue that the Constitution and the Motor Vehicles Act do not permit such a condition.

The notification provides that a driver who fails to satisfy the Regional Transport Officer (RTO) about his Marathi knowledge will have his licence suspended for three months initially, and permanently afterwards. This condition applies to new permits and renewals.

The petitioners rely on a March 1, 2017 order of a division bench of the Bombay High Court, which quashed a November 2016 circular with a similar requirement for auto permits.

The PIL notes that the Transport Commissioner and Transport Minister have issued instructions for the implementation of the notification. Dedicated flying squads have been asked to check drivers, issue one-month notices, and suspend badges. According to a local newspaper report, on the first day of implementation, 522 rickshaw drivers were checked in the Vasai-Virar area, where many UP-Bihar migrants reside. Notices were issued to 61 drivers with warnings of licence suspension.

The petitioners state that they face checks, notices, suspensions, and cancellation of badges daily. They describe themselves as persons for whom driving is their only profession and source of income. Several petitioners are migrants from Uttar Pradesh.

They have stated that if their badges are suspended or cancelled, they and their families will be without income. The petitioners have filed the PIL for the community of approximately 9,65,000 rickshaw and taxi permit holders.