NATIONAL LAW INSTITUTE UNIVERSITY

PROPERTY LAW PROJETCT-I

Registration Act

Submitted To-

Prof. Dr. Sanjay Yadav

Submitted By-

Akshita Pandey

2015 B.A.LLB 32
 INDEX

1. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

2. INTRODUCTION

3. SEC. 17 REGISTRATION ACT

4. SEC 18 REGISTRATION ACT

5. SEC 49 REGISTRATION ACT

 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to thank my teacher for Property Law-I, Prof. Sanjay Yadav without whose help
and guidance this project would not have been possible.

Akshita Pandey

2015 BALLB 32
 Introduction

The Registration of documents is made under the provisions of the Registration Act, 1908.
The Registration Act 1908 is used for proper recording and registration of documents /
instruments, which give them more authenticity.

Registration refers to the recording of the contents of a document with a Registering Officer
appointed by the State Government. The State Government may exclude any district or tracts
of country from its operation. The Registering Officer performs the important function of
preservation of copies of the original document.

Objective of Registration

The objectives of registration are:

1. The conservation of evidence,

2. Assurance of title, publicity of documents and prevention of fraud.
3. Registration ensures and safeguards the interest of an intending purchaser.

Registration Establishment for registration of documents:

The main purpose for which the Registration Act 1908 was designed was to ensure that
correct land records could be maintained. The Act is also used for proper recording of
transactions relating to other immovable property. The Act provides for registration of other
documents also, which can give these documents more authenticity. Registering authorities
have been provided in all the districts for this purpose.

Where document should be registered

The document should be presented for registration at the office of Registrar/Sub-Registrar in

whose jurisdiction the property is located, during 9.30 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. on any working day.

Document relating to immovable property should be registered in the office of Sub-Registrar

of sub-district within which the whole or some portion of the property is situated. Other
documents can be registered in the office of Sub-Registrar where all persons executing the
document desire it to be registered.

A Registrar can accept a document which is registerable with sub-registrar who is

subordinate to him. The document should be presented for registration at the office of
Registrar/Sub-Registrar. However, in the special case, the officer may attend residence of any
person to accept a document or will.

All persons executing the document or their representatives, assigns or agents holding a
power of attorney must appear before registering officer. They have to admit execution and
sign the document in the presence of Registrar. Appearance may be simultaneous or at
different times. If some of the persons are unable to appear within 4 months, further time up
to additional 4 months can be given on payment of fine up to 10 times the proper registration
fee.

The documents that are presented for registration should be accompanied by true copies
thereof. Any blanks, erasure or alteration in the document should be attested by the person
executing the document with their signatures.

The delivery of the document is made on the production of the receipt issued by the cashier in
respect of the document at the time of presentation.

Documents of which registration are compulsory

Registration of documents relating to immovable property (of the value of more than Rs.
100 /-) is compulsory. Registration of will is optional.

Documents not requiring registration

Some documents though related to immovable property are not required to be registered.
These are given in section 17(2) of the Registration Act 1908.

Optional Registration
Documents relating to immovable property (of the value of less than 100 /-), lease of
immovable property for a term of less than a year, documents relating to movable property,
wills are optionally registrable.
Time of presentation for registration
The document should be submitted for registration within 4 months from the date of
execution. Decree or order of Court can be submitted within four months from the day it
becomes final. If the document is executed by several persons at different times, it may be
presented for registration within 4 months from the date of each execution. If a document is
executed abroad by some of the parties, it can be presented for registration within four
months after its arrival in India. In cases where the delay of presentation of the document is
unavoidable, the Registrar may accept the document for registration on payment of fine not
exceeding ten times the amount of registration fee. Wills may be presented for registration at
any time and may be deposited in any manner.

Re-registration
If a person finds that a document has been filed for registration by a person who is not
empowered to do so, he can present the document for re-registration within 4 months from
the date he became aware of the fact that registration of document is invalid.

Presentation of documents
As per Section 32 of the Registration Act, 1908 every document to be registered under the
Act shall be presented at the registration-office:-

1. a) by some person executing or claiming under the same, or, in the case of a copy of a
decree or order, claiming under the decree or order, or
b). by the representative or assign or such a person, or

c.) by the agent of such a person, representative or assign, duly authorised by power-of-
attorney and authenticated in the manner hereinafter mentioned.

As per Section 33 of the Act, for the purpose of section 32, the following powers-of-attorney
shall alone be recognised:-

1. if the principal at the time of executing the power-of-attorney resides in any part of India
in which the Act is in force, a power-of-attorney executed before and authenticated by the
Registrar or Sub-Registrar within whose district or sub-district the principal resides;
2. if the principal at the time aforesaid (resides in any part of India in which this Act is not
in force), a power –of-attorney executed before and authenticated by any magistrate;
3. if the principal at the time aforesaid does not reside in India, a power-of-attorney
executed before and authenticated by a Notary Public, or any Court, Judge, Magistrate,
(Indian) consul or Vice-Consul, or representative of the Central government.
Provided that the following persons shall not be required to attend at any registration-office
or Court for the purpose of executing any such power-of-attorney as is mentioned in clauses
(a) and (b) of this section, namely:-

 persons who by reason of bodily infirmity are unable without risk or serious
inconvenience so to attend;
 Persons who are in jail under civil or criminal process; and
 Persons exempt by law from personal appearance in court.
Effective date of document
A document takes effect from its date of execution and not from the date of registration.
However, if the document states that it will be effective from a particular date, it will be
effective from that date.

Document registered has priority over oral agreement – Any non-testamentary document
registered under the Act takes effect against any oral agreement relating to the property. The
only exceptions are:

 If possession of property (movable or immovable) is delivered on basis of such oral

agreement and such delivery of possession is valid transfer under any law
 (b) Mortgage by deposit of title deeds takes effect against any mortgage deed
subsequently executed and registered which relates to same property
Effect of non-registration
If a document which is required to be registered under section 17 or under provisions of
Transfer of Property Act, 1882 is not registered, the effect is that such un-registered
document:

 does not affect any immovable property comprised therein

 cannot be received as evidence of any transaction affecting such property. Thus, the
document becomes redundant and useless for all practical purposes. It can be accepted as
evidence in criminal proceedings.
 Documents of which registration is compulsory
As per Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908, the registration of the following documents
is compulsory:

(1) The following documents shall be registered, if the property to which they relate is situate
in a district in which, and if they have been executed on or after the date on which, Act No.
XVI of 1864, or the Indian Registration Act, 1866, or the Indian Registration Act, 1871, or
the Indian Registration Act, 1877 or this Act came or comes into force, namely:-

(a) instruments of gift of immovable property;

(b) other non-testamentary instruments which purport or operate to create, declare, assign,
limit or extinguish, whether in present or in future, any right, title or interest, whether vested
or contingent, of the value of one hundred rupees, and upwards, to or in immovable property;

(c) non-testamentary instruments which acknowledge the receipt or payment of any

consideration on account of the creation, declaration, assignment, limitation or extinction of
any such right, title or interest; and

(d) leases of immovable property from year to year, or for any term exceeding one year, or
reserving a yearly rent;

12[(e) non-testamentary instruments transferring or assigning any decree or order of a court

or any award when such decree or order or award purports or operates to create, declare,
assign, limit or extinguish, whether in present or in future, any right, title or interest, whether
vested or contingent, of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards, to or in immovable
property:]

PROVIDED that the State Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette,
exempt from the operation of this sub-section any leases executed in any district, or part of a
district, the terms granted by which do not exceed five years and the annual rent reserved by
which do not exceed fifty rupees.

(2) Nothing in clauses (b) and (c) of sub-section (1) applies to-
(i) any composition-deed; or

(ii) any instrument relating to shares in a joint Stock Company, notwithstanding that the
assets of such company consist in whole or in part of immovable property; or

(iii) any debenture issued by any such company and not creating, declaring, assigning,
limiting or extinguishing any right, title or interest, to or in immovable property except
insofar as it entitles the holder to the security afforded by a registered instrument whereby the
company has mortgaged, conveyed or otherwise transferred the whole or part of its
immovable property or any interest therein to trustees upon trust for the benefit of the holders
of such debentures; or

(iv) any endorsement upon or transfer of any debenture issued by any such company; or

(v) any document not itself creating, declaring, assigning, limiting or extinguishing any right,
title or interest of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards to or in immovable property,
but merely creating a right to obtain another document which will, when executed, create,
declare, assign, limit or extinguish any such right, title or interest; or

(vi) any decree or order of a court 13[except a decree or order expressed to be made on a
compromise and comprising immovable property other than that which is the subject-matter
of the suit or proceeding;] or

(vii) any grant of immovable property by government; or

(viii) any instrument of partition made by a revenue-officer; or

(ix) any order granting a loan or instrument of collateral security granted under the Land
Improvement Act, 1871, or the Land Improvement Loans Act, 1883; or

(x) any order granting a loan under the Agriculturists Loans Act, 1884, or instrument for
securing the repayment of a loan made under that Act; or
14[(xa) any order made under the Charitable Endowments Act, 1890, (6 of 1890) vesting any
property in a Treasurer of Charitable Endowments or divesting any such treasurer of any
property; or]

(xi) any endorsement on a mortgage-deed acknowledging the payment of the whole or any
part of the mortgage-money, and any other receipt for payment of money due under a
mortgage when the receipt does not purport to extinguish the mortgage; or

(xii) any certificate of sale granted to the purchaser of any property sold by public auction by
a civil or revenue-officer.

15[Explanation: A document purporting or operating to effect a contract for the sale of

immovable property shall not be deemed to require or ever to have required registration by
reason only of the fact that such document contains a recital of the payment of any earnest
money or of the whole or any part of the purchase money.]

(3) Authorities to adopt a son, executed after the 1st day of January, 1872, and not conferred
by a will, shall also be registered.

Essentials of Section 17
Section 17 of the Indian Registration Act (Act XVI of 1908) would be attracted in a case
where the disputes relates to a charge sought to be created by a debenture on immoveable
property which was existent at the date of the creation of the charge and was in the ownership
of the company at that date. It would, therefore, necessarily follow from it that a debenture
which seeks to create, declare or limit any right, title or interest to or in immoveable property
would be covered by clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 17 of the Indian Registration Act
1908.

When A Document Needs Registration?

There are several documents that are not compulsorily register able under section 17 of the
Registration Act 1908. Some of them require high stamp duty and some of them do not. Even
the ones that require high stamp duty, if they are under stamped, can be rectified later by
paying a penal amount ten times the original amount. Non-payment of stamp duty does not
make the document void or otherwise invalid.
The consequences of under stamping as per the stamp act are:
(1) to make the document inadmissible for the evidence before any authority capable of
receiving evidence of before any public authority.
(2) the document can also be impounded for enforcing the payment of full stamp value. An
under stamped instrument can be admitted as evidence in court, if penal stamp duty is ten
times the value of the original amount, and is paid

Section 17 & Section 53-A of Transfer of Property Act 1882

The combined effect of section 53-A of the Transfer of Property Act 1908 and section 17 of
the Indian Registration Act is that an incomplete deed of transfer, though not registered or
even attested, is regarded, as a contract in writing but such a deed must have been signed by
the transferor or his agent.
An unregistered document affecting immoveable property, required by the Transfer of
Property Act 1882 or the Registration Act 1908 to be registered, may be received in evidence
of a contract in the suit for the specific performance or as evidence of part-performance of a
contract for the purpose of section 53-A or as evidence of any collateral transaction not
required by a registered instrument. Where the parties execute an unregistered sale deed
without prior permission of the competent authority, the transaction will be void and this
section will not be applicable. In cases, where land is transferred in lieu of dower and the
bride was put in possession of it and a kabulnama was executed which was unregistered
evidencing the transfer, it was held that section 53-A of the Transfer of Property Act 1882
would apply to such a case and a suit by the father in law and a declaration of title and
possession will fall.

In Haji Mokshed Mondal Vs. Del Rouson Bibi 1 it was held that section 53-A of the
Transfer of Property Act 1882 precludes from enforcing any rights in respect of the disputed
property inconsistent with or not mentioned in the said contract and therefore, the suit was
dismissed.

Section 17 and Section 54 of Transfer of Property Act 1882

The combined effect of section 54 of the Transfer of Property Act 1882 and section 17 of the
Registration Act 1908 is that, a contract of sale in respect of immoveable property of the
1
Haji Mokshed Mondal v. Del Rouson Bibi AIR 1971 Cal. 162.
value of more than one hundred rupees without registration cannot extinguish the equity of
redemption. In India, it is only on execution of the conveyance and registration of transfer of
the mortgager's interest by registered instrument that the mortgagor's right of redemption will
be extinguished. The conferment of power to sell without intervention of the court in a
mortgage deed by itself will not deprive the mortgagor of his right to redemption. The
extinction of the right to redemption has to be subsequent to the deed conferring such power.
The right of redemption is not extinguished at the expiry of the period. The equity of
redemption is not extinguished by mere contract of sale.
The mortgagor's right to redeem will survive until there has been completion of sale by the
mortgagee by a registered deed. It must also be noted that section 17 of the Indian
Registration Act 1908 or the second para of the Transfer of Property Act 1882, will have no
application to the agreement to recover property, being non-creation of any interest in the
immoveable property.
In Narandas Karsondas vs. S.A. Kantam (AIR 1977 SC 774) 2, it was held that the
mortgagor has a right to redeem unless the sale of the property was complete by registration
in accordance with the provisions of the Registration Act 1908, and therefore, the appeal was
dismissed.

Documents whose registration is optional

2
Narandas Karsondas v. S.A. Kantam (AIR 1977 SC 774)
Any of the following documents may be registered under this Act, namely (Section 18):-

(a) instruments (other than instruments of gift and wills) which purport or operate to create,
declare, assign, limit or extinguish, whether in present or in future, any right, title or interest,
whether vested or contingent, of a value less than one hundred rupees, to or in immovable
property;

(b) instruments acknowledging the receipt or payment of any consideration on account of the
creation, declaration, assignment, limitation or extinction of any such right, title or interest;

(c) Leases of immovable property for any term not exceeding one year, and leases exempted
under section 17;

(cc) instruments transferring or assigning any decree or order of a court or any award when
such decree or order or award purports or operates to create, declare, assign, limit or
extinguish, whether in present or in future, any right, title or interest, whether vested or
contingent, of a value less than one hundred rupees, to or in immovable property;]

(d) instruments (other than wills) which purport or operate to create, declare, assign, limit or
extinguish any right, title or interest to or in movable property;

(e) Wills; and

(f) All other documents not required by section 17 to be registered.3

SECTION 49: EFFECT OF NON-REGISTRATION OF DOCUMENTS REQUIRED

TO BE REGISTERED

3
Section 18, Indian Registration Act, 1908.
No document required by section 17 or by any provision of the Transfer of Property Act,
1882] to be registered shall-

a) affect any immovable property comprised therein, or

b) confer any power to adopt, or
c) be received as evidence of any transaction affecting such property or conferring such
power, unless it has been registered:

PROVIDED that an unregistered document affecting immovable property and required by

this Act or the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, to be registered may be received as evidence
of a contract in a suit for specific performance under Chapter II of the Specific Relief Act,
1877, or as evidence of part performance of a contract for the purposes of section 53A of the
Transfer of Property Act, 1882, or as evidence of any collateral transaction not required to be
effected by registered instrument.

SCOPE OF SECTION 49
1) A document required to be registered, if unregistered is not admissible into evidence
under Section 49 of the Registration Act.
2) Such unregistered document can however be used as an evidence of collateral purpose
as provided in the Proviso to Section 49 of the Registration Act.
3) A collateral transaction must be independent of, or divisible from, the transaction to
effect which the law required registration.
4) A collateral transaction must be a transaction not itself required to be effected by a
registered document, that is, a transaction creating, etc. any right, title or interest in
immoveable property of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards.
5) If a document is inadmissible in evidence for want of registration, none of its terms
can be admitted in evidence and that to use a document for the purpose of proving an
important clause would not be using it as a collateral purpose

In the case of Hriday Narayan Choudhary v. Shyam Kishore4 a document that was required to
be registered under section 17 of the act if not registered is not admissible as evidence.
However, the matter does not end here. The court may look into the document to corroborate
other evidences.

4
Hriday Narayan Choudhary v. Shyam Kishore AIR 2002 SC 252
KP Saha and Sons Pvt. Ltd. V. MS Development Consultant Ltd. 5 apex court said a
document required to be registered if not registered is inadmissible as evidence in court. It
may be used for collateral purpose. The same was reiterated by the court w.r.t. sale ded in
Balwant Singh v. Nihal Singh.6

5
KP Saha and Sons Pvt. Ltd. V. MS Development Consultant Ltd 2008 8 SCC 564
6
Balwant Singh v. Nihal Singh 2003 4 SCC 161.