Patna: Revenue and land reforms minister Dilip Kumar Jaiswal has ordered the suspension of Kurhani block revenue officer Dharmendra Kumar in Muzaffarpur district for dereliction of duty and delaying files. Jaiswal stated on Monday that action has been initiated against negligent officials.
Minister's Warning to Officials
In a strong statement, Jaiswal said, “In line with this, Dharmendra, a revenue officer posted in Kurhani, has been suspended. This department faces the highest number of allegations regarding corruption. It has gripped the department like a cancerous growth. A ‘course of antibiotics’ or remedial treatment has now begun. Dharmendra had faced allegations of dereliction of duty on multiple occasions. This serves as a message to all officials. Work has fallen significantly behind due to a strike of revenue officers that lasted for three months. Officials will now have to work tirelessly — day and night — and with absolute integrity.”
Strengthening the Bihar Land Tribunal
Meanwhile, the department has increased the number of members in the Bihar Land Tribunal from four to seven in view of the rising number of land disputes and the need for speedy disposal of pending cases. Concurrently, five new judicial members have also been appointed to the tribunal. They are retired district and sessions judge (Kishanganj) Manoj Kumar, retired principal district and sessions judge (Purnia) Kishore Prasad, Patna high court advocate Kumar Navinam, retired district and sessions judge (Gaya) Ravindra Patwari, and advocate Ravindra Rai.
Government's Commitment
The minister said the state government is committed to the time-bound disposal of land-related cases. The expansion of the tribunal is expected to reduce the backlog of cases and provide faster justice to litigants.
