Bengaluru: With a huge backlog of cases in revenue courts across the state persisting at worrisome levels, the revenue department has asked all deputy commissioners (DCs) to hold regular hearings so that the trickle-down effect will bring about systemic changes.
“During a recent review meeting, we instructed all DCs to hold regular courts without fail. If a DC conducts courts consistently, it will create a chain reaction, leading to assistant commissioners (Acs) and tahsildars to follow suit. This coordinated effort will help reduce stress on the system and clear cases within the stipulated time,” Rajender Kumar Kataria, principal secretary, revenue department, told TOI.
“We cannot afford to let this backlog continue. We are now closely monitoring all DCs’ revenue court processes to ensure the cases are resolved in a timely manner,” he added.
Senior officials of the department are also upset over the not-so-widespread adoption of the Revenue Court Case Monitoring System (RCCMS) which is also contributing to ongoing delays and inefficiencies.
With directives mandating the complete digitalization of all case records in RCCMS not being heeded, Kataria has ordered a comprehensive inquiry into the AC courts of Bengaluru and Kolar, with actions likely to be taken against the responsible officials.
The department has come up with a series of steps to support DCs in handling the cases. “We’ve provided legal advisors at their offices to ensure they have the expertise needed to resolve cases promptly and with attention to quality,” Kataria said, adding that in a bid to free up time for court hearings, no meetings are being scheduled in the afternoons.
“Right now, the number of cases in my court is just 75, down from 500 about a year back. As the revenue department is monitoring the cases very closely and we have been provided more time and legal service, we are having court hearings at least two days a week without fail, which is helping in the efficient disposal of the cases,” said Yeshwanth V Gurukar, deputy commissioner and district magistrate, Ramanagara.
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We challenged a khata-related order from an assistant commissioner’s court in the Bengaluru Urban DC’s court in Sept 2021. We had three hearings but after that, no further hearings were scheduled. A few years ago, officials were saying they were busy with elections and the code of conduct. Now there is nothing of that kind but the situation remains the same. There is no clear idea of when the case will be resolved
Varun Teja N, Bengaluru
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We approached the Chitradurga DC’s court in 2019 after our application for land conversion elicited no response. The case is still pending, and we are hoping and waiting for the DC to take a call and hear our case
– Chaitra Manjunath, Bengaluru
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BOX:
Pendency in DC courts in Karnataka
Duration
0-2 years
2-5 years
5 years+
Cases pending
4,178
1,388
3,505
Source: Revenue Dept
As on Jan 23, 2025