The Chhattisgarh High Court has called upon the state government to provide details on the number of pending revenue cases in the state, following a petition that highlighted the growing backlog of such cases. A woman from Bilaspur filed the petition accusing a Tehsildar of failing to resolve revenue-related matters and causing unnecessary delays. In response, the High Court has issued directives to the Chief Secretary and the Revenue Secretary to furnish information on pending cases through an affidavit.
The complaint originated from concerns over land adjudication issues in Bilaspur district, where there have been numerous complaints regarding land registries and disputes over land parcel identifiers. Allegations have also surfaced regarding the sale of undervalued land at inflated prices, with at least one Tehsildar facing action over these matters. The petitioner, having waited in vain for the resolution of her revenue case, turned to the court for relief.
During a previous hearing, the court had requested information from the Bilaspur Collector about case resolutions and related details through an affidavit. The bench, comprising Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal, was informed that in Bilaspur alone, there are 497 undisputed and 197 disputed pending cases of land transfer. The court expressed surprise at the backlog despite the provision for online processing and a mandate to resolve cases within 90 days, indicating a potentially larger problem statewide.
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In light of this, the High Court has sought a comprehensive report from the state’s Chief Secretary and Revenue Secretary, initially prompted by the Bilaspur Collector’s disclosures. The court has also previously instructed corrections to be made regarding the pending cases at the Tehsil office and ordered transfers and suspensions of certain revenue inspectors and patwaris to address the issue.
