Karnataka achieves drastic reduction in ‘overdue’ cases before revenue courts: Minister 

Karnataka has now become a model for the country in terms of handling revenue disputes as the State has drastically reduced the number of “overdue” cases, which have been pending beyond deadline, before the courts of tahsildars and Assistant Commissioners. 

Karnataka has now become a model for the country in terms of handling revenue disputes as the State has drastically reduced the number of “overdue” cases, which have been pending beyond deadline, before the courts of tahsildars and Assistant Commissioners. 

This has resulted in a significant social impact through reduction in the burden of litigation, financial expenses, and harassment for farmers as over 95% of such disposed cases have attained legal finality without being taken before either higher revenue courts or civil courts. 

The rules stipulate that disputes before the tahsildars’ courts should be disposed of within three months, while the next higher authority of Assistant Commissioners’ courts should dispose of such cases within a maximum of six months. However, the number of overdue cases before these courts have been huge across the country.  

Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda pointed out that Karnataka had 10,774 overdue cases before the courts of tahsildars and 60,000 before the courts of Assistant Commissioners when he took over the Department in 2023. “We have managed to reduce them to below 400 in tahsildars’ courts and 24,000 in the Assistant Commissioners’ courts,” he said. 

The Minister told The Hindu that it was possible owing to special focus given through regular and real-time monitoring as well as reviews regarding pendency. All cases had been onboarded to the Revenue Court Case Monitoring System (RCCMS), which is a web application to track ongoing cases.

The Revenue Department has initiated action against those failing to onboard the pending cases to RCCMS and those delaying the disposal of cases. Officials have been told to issue even orders regarding cases through RCCMs.