Public trust is earned through integrity, not money
By Mohd Amin Mir
Some news reports do more than make headlines. They make society stop and ask difficult questions.
Yesterday’s report about the alleged trapping of a Patwari in Budgam by the Jammu & Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), in connection with an alleged demand and acceptance of ₹10,000 for issuing a revenue extract (Fard), has once again brought corruption in the Revenue Department into public discussion. According to the report, the Patwari had allegedly demanded ₹12,000 and was later trapped while accepting ₹10,000. The allegations will, of course, have to be established through due legal process.
But the case raises a larger question: what happens to public trust when a government employee is accused of demanding money for a service he is already paid to provide?
A Patwari carries public trust
For generations, the Patwari has been the face of the Revenue Department at the village level. Land records, ownership details, girdawari, mutations and other revenue matters directly affect the lives and property of ordinary families.
A small delay, mistake or alleged demand for money can cause serious hardship to farmers, labourers, widows, elderly citizens and families dealing with inheritance or land disputes.
The Patwari’s chair therefore carries responsibility and dignity. It must never become a place where citizens feel compelled to pay for a legitimate government service.
A message to the Patwari Association
The President of the All J&K Patwaris Association has every right to defend the legitimate interests, dignity and service conditions of Patwaris. But professional rights must go hand in hand with professional responsibility.
The association should send an unequivocal message to its members:
Do not demand. Do not accept. Do not facilitate corruption.
It should stand firmly with honest Patwaris while making clear that legitimate grievances will be pursued—but corruption will not be defended.
One alleged case should not define an entire fraternity. Many Patwaris work under difficult conditions and serve the public honestly. They deserve recognition, and their reputation must not be damaged by the misconduct of others.
The issue is not Patwaris versus the public. It is honesty versus corruption.
Enforcement and reform must go together
The ACB must continue to act wherever credible evidence exists, without fear or favour. At the same time, every accused person is entitled to due process and must be presumed innocent until proven guilty.
A government office is not a marketplace. A public service cannot become a private transaction.
But enforcement alone cannot eliminate corruption. Jammu and Kashmir’s ongoing digitisation of land records and revenue services offers an opportunity to reduce unnecessary physical interaction and improve transparency.
Online application tracking, clear service timelines, digital audit trails, effective grievance mechanisms and regular supervision should become integral to revenue administration. Technology must not merely digitise old procedures; it should make services more transparent and accountable.
Dear Patwari, remember who pays your salary
Every government employee should occasionally ask: Who am I serving?
The answer is the public.
The citizen approaching a Patwari may be a farmer, a labourer, a widow or an elderly person seeking a document connected to his or her livelihood or family property. That citizen is not an opportunity to make an extra rupee. He is the very person for whom the government machinery exists.
A Patwari who refuses a bribe is not doing the public a favour. He is doing his duty.
And if an allegation of bribery is proved, the damage extends beyond the money demanded. It weakens the citizen’s faith in government and casts suspicion upon honest employees.
Protecting the dignity of the profession
The recent Budgam case should be treated as a warning to the entire Revenue establishment—not as a verdict against all Patwaris.
The honest should stand proudly. Those who have made mistakes should correct themselves. Those who deliberately indulge in corruption should understand that stronger vigilance, digital records and online services are steadily narrowing the space for such practices.
The President of the All J&K Patwaris Association should hear the public’s message carefully:
“We respect the Patwari, but we will not accept corruption.”
The dignity of the Patwari is not protected by defending every Patwari. It is protected by ensuring that honest officials have nothing to hide and corrupt ones have nowhere to hide.
Jammu & Kashmir needs a Revenue Department that citizens can trust. That trust begins at the village level, with the person sitting behind the Patwari’s desk.
Today the patwari is not asking money but have become hidden brokers and are having close nexus with land brokers and land mafia. They deny or delay the services to common people but lateron get it done through brokers. The services should be made easly available to the people through digital system.
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