Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 20: Minister for Revenue, Relief & Rehabilitation, Syed Basharat Bukhari today convened a high level meeting to review the status of the chronic cases pending disposal in various courts.
Advocate General, Jehangir Iqbal Ganaie, Financial Commissioner Revenue, Lokesh Jha Dutt, Commissioner Secretary to Government, Revenue Department, Mohammad Ashraf Mir, Custodian General J&K, Mohammad Javed Khan, IGP Crime Branch, Muneer Ahmad Khan, Relief Commissioner (Migrants) Jammu, Y P Suman, Deputy Advocate General, Ehsan Mirza and other senior officers from the Revenue Department were present in the meeting.
While taking stock of pendency of cases before different courts and the reasons for staggering, the meeting was informed that shortage of legal experts, delay in filing responses, lack of proper monitoring of the cases and delays in implementation of court orders and judgments which further attract contempt proceedings are some of the reasons for pendency.
The meeting was further told that lack of coordination and communication gap with the legal experts is also a reason behind the poor show of the state in courts which often involves huge financial implications.
The Minister impressed upon the concerned authorities to immediately address the lacunae for speedy disposal of the cases. He issued instructions for minimizing the time lag in filing response by ensuring dedicated monitoring of pending cases on monthly basis. This will not only streamline the process but also depict overall pendency, he stated.
The Minister instructed the Revenue Department to attach priority in filing responses in ongoing cases besides giving due diligence in issuing orders under the provisions of various acts and guidelines. He further directed to make Deputy Commissioners as nodal officers to ensure liaison with the offices of Divisional Commissioner and Financial Commissioner for providing timely information regarding various cases.
For fast-tracking and speedy disposal of cases, the Minister directed to vigorously monitor court cases at each level, prioritizing those cases where the State is a party and involves financial implications.
With regard to cases of Evacuee Property Department, the Minister called for hiring of fresh standing councils with the approval of Law Department especially in districts with higher number of unsettled cases. He also sought case records of advocates who were previously engaged in districts as standing councils and their performances thereof.
For proactively resolving cases of the Relief Organization, the Minister entrusted the officers to reconsider various cases under the new provisions of recently framed guidelines for ‘bifurcation of migrant ration cards’ and ‘ease of registration of migrants’. An effective channel of communication with all stakeholders should be maintained for further strengthening the resolution process, he added.
Strict instructions were issued that no admission be made before the court either by councils or officers of the department without taking prior approval from competent authorities.
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