Cheque bounce and land disputes make up a large share of the judicial backlog in India, clogging courts and leaving judges with limited time to hear more complex matters.
In order to reduce court pendency, the Centre has asked states to take the lead in resolving these cheque dishonour and land acquisition cases through mediation, according to a government document reviewed exclusively by Mint and confirmed by two officials.
According to the direction issued as part of the Mediation for Nation 2.0 campaign, state chief secretaries have been asked to actively support efforts to identify and dispose of cases that can be settled through mediation, the government officials cited earlier said, adding that the cases where the state is a complainant can be resolved through settlement.
The emphasis is on disputes that are legally compoundable—cases that can be resolved mutually, including cheque bounce cases, land acquisition matters and certain criminal offences, the officials said on the condition of anonymity.
Volume concern
The move assumes significance as cheque dishonour cases have been identified as a key focus area due to their sheer volume. As per government data, over 8.007 million cheque bounce cases are pending across high courts. Such cases are heavily concentrated in a few high courts, with the Allahabad high court alone accounting for over 3.25 million pending cases, followed by Rajasthan with about 738,000 and Delhi with over 718,000 cases.
Queries sent to Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Delhi governments as well as Union ministries of finance and law and justice remained unanswered till press time.
While legal experts welcomed the Centre’s initiative, they flagged potential implementation challenges and concerns over decision-making powers at the state level, stating that clear authority structures and safeguards will be key to the success of the mediation drive.
“It is easy to outline such measures on paper, but in practice every legal action follows a defined process that must be adhered to, especially by state authorities. Government departments are bound by rules, approvals and audit requirements, which can limit their flexibility in settling disputes,” said Vijay Kumar, partner at law firm Fox Mandal.
“We need to understand the extent to which states have been empowered under the mediation framework to negotiate and settle claims. In many mediation cases, parties agree to a lower amount to close the dispute quickly, but the key question is whether state officials have the authority to take such decisions without facing legal or administrative challenges later. Unless there is clear guidance and protection for decision-making, there may be hesitation at the implementation level,” said Kumar.
The Mediation for the Nation 2.0 campaign, launched by the National Legal Services Authority and the Supreme Court's (SC) Mediation and Conciliation Project Committee (MCPC) in January, is a 90-day nationwide drive aimed at accelerating the resolution of pending cases through alternative dispute resolution. The government informed Parliament last month that as of 23 March 2026, there were 63,95,572 pending cases in the Supreme Court and high courts, while subordinate courts accounted for 4,86,33,521 pending cases.
Queries emailed to MCPC remained unanswered.
“This move is important as a huge number of cases, particularly cheque bounce and land disputes, are stuck in courts for years. When such cases are shifted to mediation, they can be settled much faster as both parties sit together and agree on a solution instead of going through long hearings,” said Manish K. Shubhay, partner at The Precept-Law Offices.
According to the government document, land acquisition disputes have also been prioritised, especially those involving compensation and related claims, where delays often lead to prolonged uncertainty for affected landowners. In addition, states have also been asked to settle criminal compoundable cases through mediation, as these can be resolved between parties.
“Centre’s mediation push rightly targets the heart of India’s docket crisis. Cheque bounce and land disputes are resolution-driven, not litigation-worthy, and shifting them to mediation can cut pendency dramatically. The key now is credible, state-led execution,” said Gauhar Mirza, partner at Saraf and Partners, a legal consultancy firm.
A docket crisis refers to the overwhelming backlog of cases in courts, delaying delivery of justice.
Apart from states, courts have also been advised to list such matters for mediation at an early stage and ensure that settled cases are not kept pending due to procedural delays, as per the document reviewed by Mint.
The Centre has asked states to facilitate the process by deploying trained mediators and strengthening mediation infrastructure, including by involving legal services authorities, legal aid volunteers, retired officials and subject-matter experts such as banking professionals to handle specialised cases like cheque dishonour disputes.