Odisha Citizen Grievance Redressal

To
Hon’ble Shri Nitin Nabin, MP
National President, Bharatiya Janata Party
6A, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg, New Delhi – 110002

Subject : Humble request for review of the performance of certain Ministers of Government of Odisha on account of failure to redress the grievances of common citizens. Proposal for starting of a Senior Citizens / Pensioners oriented Gen Z (Old) Movement in Bhubaneswar.

Respected Sir,

With utmost respect and faith in your leadership, I beg to submit that the people of Odisha, including lakhs of senior citizens and pensioners, reposed great faith in the Bharatiya Janata Party and gave a decisive mandate with the hope that long-pending problems of common citizens would be resolved with sensitivity, transparency and accountability.

However, even after more than two years of BJP governance in Odisha, the ground-level delivery and redressal mechanism for citizens, particularly for senior citizens and pensioners, continues to be far from satisfactory. This has caused deep anguish and a sense of helplessness among the most vulnerable sections of society.

I therefore most respectfully request your kind intervention to review the functioning of certain Departments and Ministers whose inaction and selective approach is directly responsible for the prevailing distress.

1. Complete breakdown of Citizen Grievance Redressal Mechanism
   There is presently no effective, accountable and time-bound system to redress the grievances of citizens.
   a) Emails: Thousands of grievances sent to official departmental email IDs remain unattended. No acknowledgment, no speaking reply, and no resolution is communicated to the complainant.
   b) CPGRAMS: The disposal and monitoring of CPGRAMS complaints in Odisha is in a deplorable state. Despite clear guidelines and repeated instructions from the Hon’ble PMO, complaints are neither disposed of within the prescribed time limit nor are timely, reasoned replies furnished.

A factual review of the current CPGRAMS pendency and disposal data for Odisha will itself reveal the gravity of hardship faced by common citizens, and more so by senior citizens and pensioners who are physically unable to pursue matters repeatedly.

If this situation continues, the very purpose of CPGRAMS as a citizen-centric grievance platform stands defeated for the people of Odisha.

2. Precarious state of Revenue & Disaster Management Department and Law Department
   The Revenue & Disaster Management Department is failing on two vital fronts:
   a) Disaster Relief: Adequate and timely assistance to poor and affected families during floods and natural calamities is not reaching the intended beneficiaries.
   b) Land Records & Disputes: There is a total absence of effective regulation, updating and settlement of land records across Odisha.

This administrative high-handedness, poor interpretation of law and selective approach has led to a situation where the State Government is losing nearly all land-related matters before the Hon’ble High Court of Odisha. These are largely weak cases which could have been settled at the executive level itself. Instead, senior citizens, pensioners and other citizens are being forced into prolonged and expensive litigation.

More disturbing is the practice of filing Special Leave Petitions in the Hon’ble Supreme Court:
a) It leads to wasteful expenditure of public money and precious judicial time;
b) It causes immense harassment to senior citizens and pensioners who are compelled to defend their rights from High Court to Supreme Court;
c) The State is adopting a contradictory stand. In matters involving similarly situated persons, Hon’ble Supreme Court has dismissed SLPs filed by the State, and in some cases remanded the matter to High Court. After the High Court again rules against the State, SLPs are filed once again only to prolong litigation and harass poor litigants.

It is respectfully submitted that in matters involving rich, influential and powerful estate holders, the State does not pursue such aggressive litigation. The Revenue Department is responsible for recommending such selective SLPs against poor citizens, and the Law Department is equally responsible for concurring with such proposals. This dual failure reflects arbitrariness and violates Article 14 of the Constitution.

3. Illustrative Example: Pathargadia Mouza, Bhubaneswar – A tip of the iceberg
   During settlement operations, the Assistant Settlement Officer issued “Parcha” in several mouzas across Odisha, including Pathargadia Mouza of Bhubaneswar.

As per law, a Parcha, being a draft Patta, is required to be finalized within three months if no objection is filed by any person, including the Government. In Pathargadia, no objection was filed by anyone, including the Government.

However, instead of approving the Parcha, the authorities have illegally recorded the said lands in the name of Government. The Parchas continue to hold legal validity as they have neither been rejected nor set aside by any competent authority through a judicious and speaking order.

The Hon’ble High Court has, in several cases, directed finalization of such Parchas and has treated them as final Pattas in the absence of timely objections. But the benefits of those judicial pronouncements have not been extended uniformly. As a result, hundreds of poor, middle-class and senior citizen families who received Parcha in accordance with law are still deprived of their rightful title and are unable to construct homes or obtain building plan approvals.

4. Selective implementation and discrimination
   It is also submitted that the Government is permitting conversion of land to “Gharabari” on a selective basis with the apparent intention of harassing senior citizens and pensioners.
   Pursuant to Hon’ble High Court orders, the Tahasildar has issued Pattas with “Sthitiban” status and has allowed change of Kissam in some cases, but has denied conversion to “Gharabari” in other identical cases. Such selective treatment is illegal, arbitrary and violative of the principles of equality and fairness.
5. The larger concern
   When senior citizens get justice from the Hon’ble High Court and the State still chooses to challenge it repeatedly, despite the Supreme Court having dismissed SLPs in similar matters, and despite the State having implemented High Court orders in favour of rich and influential estate owners, it sends a clear message that the rule of law is being applied selectively. This forces senior citizens and pensioners into endless litigation, defeats the purpose of governance, and undermines the pro-people image of the BJP.

PRAYER
In view of the above facts and in the interest of justice, I most humbly and respectfully pray that your good self may kindly:

1. Cause an immediate review of the functioning of the Revenue & Disaster Management Department and Law Department of Government of Odisha with respect to citizen grievance redressal and litigation policy;
2. Issue necessary directions to ensure time-bound disposal and speaking replies to all CPGRAMS and email grievances within one month from the date of receipt;
3. Direct the State Government to refrain from filing SLPs in weak and settled matters on a selective basis, and to implement High Court judgments uniformly and in letter and spirit, as is being done in cases of rich and influential estate owners;
4. Withdraw immediately the proposal to file SLP on a selective basis against poor citizens, senior citizens and pensioners;
5. Direct that all plots having “Sthitiban” status pursuant to High Court orders be considered uniformly for conversion to “Gharabari”;
6. Constitute a special mechanism to immediately finalize all pending Parchas issued during settlement, particularly in Pathargadia and other similarly situated mouzas, in compliance with High Court orders; and
7. Ensure that governance in Odisha reflects the BJP’s core commitment to “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas”. A special circular may kindly be issued for expeditious and systematic disposal of all cases relating to senior citizens and pensioners.

I am confident that under your dynamic leadership, the genuine concerns of the common citizens of Odisha will receive due attention and corrective action will be taken at the earliest.

If no tangible development takes place on the above prayers, the people of Odisha as a whole, and of Bhubaneswar in particular, mainly the senior citizens and pensioners, will be compelled to launch a Senior Citizens / Pensioners oriented Gen Z (Old) Movement to secure redressal of the above grievances.

I shall be ever grateful for your kind consideration and just action.

Yours faithfully,
Lokanath Mishra
The Chief Adviser, AIPACBIC
Mobile: 9437314941
Email: jailoknathjee@gmail.com
Date: 23.08.2026

Copy for information and necessary action to:

1. Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha
2. Hon’ble Revenue Minister of Odisha
3. Hon’ble Law Minister of Odisha
4. Shri Baijayanta Panda, MP
5. Smt. Aparajita Sarangi, MP
6. Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, MP
7. Chief Secretary, Government of Odisha
8. Revenue Secretary, Government of Odisha
9. Collector, Khurda
10. Additional District Magistrate, Bhubaneswar
11. Tahasildar, Bhubaneswar