Action will be taken after legal opinion on ‘waqf’ RTC entries without documents: Revenue Minister

Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said the government will act on properties recorded as waqf in Record of Rights, Tenancy and Crops (RTCs) solely on the basis of gazette notifications, without supporting documents, after obtaining the opinion of the Law Department and Advocate General.

Replying to BJP member P.H. Poojar in the Legislative Council on Wednesday (March 18), he said the issue will be examined in the light of court rulings, including a Supreme Court judgment in a Hyderabad-related case, and directions issued by the High Court and Supreme Court.

Noting that such entries date back to gazette notifications issued in 1965 and were subsequently reflected in land records, the Minister said a joint circular will be issued after legal consultation. Deputy Commissioners will be directed to review such cases.

Mr. Byre Gowda said several properties have been recorded as waqf in RTCs without backing documents such as sale deeds, gift deeds, registration papers or grant orders. These include 21.21 acres of government land and 3,903.11 acres of private land in Bengaluru, 28.09 acres of government land in Vijayapura district, and 315.19 acres of government land and 73.01 acres of private land in Bagalkot district.

Pending cases

He added that the RTC process has been brought online, enabling tracking and faster disposal of applications. Pending cases in tahsildar courts have been reduced from 10,774 to 137, and in Assistant Commissioner courts from 73,634 to 10,255. Of the 32,787 cases pending for over five years, only 2,894 remain.

To expedite disposal, eight special Deputy Commissioners have been appointed in Bengaluru and 27 special Assistant Commissioners across the State. “Nearly 90% of long-pending cases have been cleared,” he said, adding that efforts will continue to make the Revenue Department more citizen-friendly.