Kerala High Court fines RDO ₹25K for repeated violation of court orders

Kochi: The Kerala High Court has imposed a fine of ₹25,000 on the Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) of Muvattupuzha for repeatedly violating its directions in a case related to a land conversion application.

Justice PV Kunhikrishnan passed the order while considering a petition filed by Manu Antony, a resident of Cheranalloor in Ernakulam district. The court also criticised the RDO for failing to comply with its directive to file an affidavit and for attempting to shift the blame to the government pleader.

The dispute arose after the RDO rejected Manu Antony's application seeking to remove his property from the land data bank while serving at the Kanayannur Taluk Office. Challenging the decision, Manu approached the High Court, which directed the RDO to reconsider the application. However, instead of conducting a fresh review, the officer reportedly repeated the earlier order rejecting the request.

On June 18, the High Court directed the RDO to file an affidavit explaining the reasons for rejecting the application despite the court's earlier order. When the affidavit was not filed, the court issued another order directing that the RDO be arrested and produced before it.

During the proceedings, the court also took note of a newspaper report quoting the RDO. According to the report, the officer claimed that he had handed over the affidavit to the government pleader, but it had not been filed before the court. After examining the matter, the court found the claim false and penalised the RDO for repeatedly disobeying its orders and making a false claim regarding the affidavit.