MARGAO
Saturday Courts were back in the South Goa District Collectorate on Saturday with the Salcete Mamladar and the Joint Mamlatdars taking up mundkarial cases as per directions of the South Goa District Collector, Asvin Chandru.
A couple of lawyers, however, said it is unfortunate that the Revenue Courts in the district have started Saturday Courts to expedite disposal of the mundkar cases, with a lawyer saying it would have been prudent if the mundkar cases were heard throughout the week and administrative matters on Saturday.
Lawyers also questioned the paucity of time given to the resumption of the Saturday courts, pointing out that lawyers have already pre-fixed matters, giving them no time to represent their clients before the Presiding Officers in the mundkar cases.
Salcete Mamlatdar Laxmikant Desai along with the Joint Mamlatdars took up the mundkar cases in the morning session, with one of the Joint Mamlatdars hearing a couple of matters in the morning session.
The Salcete Mamlatdar told The Goan that the hearing of mundkar cases have resumed at the Salcete revenue Courts from Saturday. “I had fixed for hearing a couple of mundkar cases before me. I have fixed for orders in one of the cases,” he said.
A visit to the Matanhy Saldanha Administrative Complex in the South Goa district Collectorate showed litigants seen inside the Revenue courts and outside. A couple of lawyers too were seen at the Revenue courts to represent their clients.
The total number of tenancy and mundkar cases pending before the Mamlatdars and Joint Mamlatdar courts in South Goa is pegged around 2,525.
The pending mundkar and tenancy cases includes 1,082 Mundkar declaration cases under Section 8A and 29(4), around 200 Mundkar purchase cases; 1,137 Tenancy declaration cases under Section 7 and 14 and 106 Tenancy purchase cases.
A glance at the statistics revealed that of the total 1,082 Mundkar declaration cases pending with the Mamlatdar and Joint Mamlatdars, around 492 cases pertains to Salcete itself.
South Goa district Collector, Asvin Chandru, IAS had last week issued an order, directing all the revenue officers, deputy Collectors, Mamlatdar’s and Joint Mamlatdars in South Goa district to take up Mundkar cases such as declaration, purchase and appeals on all Saturdays in a bid to ensure speedy disposal of the case.
In his order, the Collector had directed that the progress report of the hearings conducted on every week including Saturdays shall be submitted to this office on every Monday in a prescribed format.
Some of the city-based lawyers, however, said it was not fair to hold the mundkar cases on Saturdays without giving enough time for the lawyers to adjust to the Saturday courts. “We have pre-fixed matters before the District and Sessions Courts and the Civil and Criminal courts. With the Saturday courts now making a comeback to expedite disposal of mundkar cases, we have been left with hardly any option,” remarked a lawyer.
He further pointed out that revenue authorities should shoulder the blame over the delays in the disposal of the mundkar cases. “Many a time, we come across matters in the Revenue courts adjourned for want of the presiding officers. Even the clients and the lawyers are not informed in advance about the pre-occupation of the Presiding Officer with administrative of magisterial duties, putting the clients to severe inconveniences,” he added.
