Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court has issued directives to the state govt regarding modernisation of revenue courts and the appointment process of officers, expressing concern over prolonged pendency of cases.The bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand, while hearing petitions from elderly citizens including Shakti Singh and others involved in lengthy revenue disputes, emphasised the urgent need for systemic reforms in revenue and appellate revenue courts.“Due to not giving priority to old cases, beyond the lifetime of the original plaintiff, the decisions are getting delayed, often these cases go on for several generations,” the court observed, highlighting how disputes initiated by grandparents remain unresolved until their grandchildren’s generation. The order issued on July 8 was uploaded Saturday.The court has directed that revenue courts should be transformed into fully digital institutions. “Revenue courts of Rajasthan are required to be developed as fully digital institutions with litigants as centrality of the entire legal system. Judgments passed by revenue courts and appellate revenue courts are required to be uploaded online,” the bench said.In a significant move, the bench has ordered implementation of a comprehensive examination system for appointing officers to revenue and appellate revenue courts. This examination would test candidates’ legal proficiency in revenue and procedural laws, including CPC and the Indian Evidence Act.The court has instructed that a copy of the order be forwarded to the chief secretary, principal secretary of revenue department and principal secretary of law to advise the govt on amending relevant rules. Additionally, the court has called for preparation and implementation of standard operating procedures (SOPs) to address pending cases.“Decide old pending cases on a priority basis,” the court directed, emphasising the need for immediate action to resolve the backlog of cases.
