The Goa Police booked cab aggregator Uber and a cab driver for allegedly illegally operating in the state without the necessary permits.
Police said an FIR was registered against cab driver Devendra Satardekar and the “management of Uber” on Friday on the complaint of Santosh Gawade, Assistant Director of Transport, Vasco.
Police took cognisance of a video clip in which the accused cab driver could be purportedly seen operating with the cab aggregator outside Manohar International Airport in Mopa. Police said a probe found the incident took place on March 5.
In a statement, Goa Police said the accused driver, “in connivance with Uber management in Goa, was found operating and picking up passengers via the Uber mobile app without the necessary state transport permit or licence”.
“Such operations allegedly violate transport laws of Goa, pose safety and security risks to passengers and cause loss of revenue to the state exchequer,” the police statement said.
The FIR has been registered under sections 223 and 318 (3) of the BNS.
A spokesperson for Uber did not respond to requests for a comment.
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The incident was raised in the legislative Assembly on Friday by AAP legislator Venzy Viegas, who said the private app-based cab aggregator was illegally operating.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told the House that an inquiry would be conducted. “No permissions have been granted. We will verify this complaint,” Sawant said.
Earlier in June, Sawant announced that cab aggregators like Ola and Uber would not come to the state and that all stakeholders would be taken into confidence before taking a further call on the issue.
This came after the Goa government published draft guidelines — the Goa Transport Aggregator Guidelines, 2025 — outlining a regulatory framework for app-based taxi and bike taxi operators, including licensing fees, tariffs and incentives, to regulate app-based transport aggregators in the month of May. In response, the taxi unions across the state threatened to stage protests, saying the move would pave the way for the entry of private app-based taxi aggregators and threaten their livelihood.
