Registration of documents

Registration of documents   is compulsory

The main objects  of Registration Act is  to consolidate the  registration of documents.    To bring clarity and  regulate the  registration of documents.

Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908   provides  various documents are  to be  compulsorily  registered.   The following documents which  are compulsorily  to be registered and  section also provides  documents which are not  required  to be compulsorily registered.

1)    Instrument of gift of immovable property

2)    other non- testamentary instruments of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards, to or in immovable property

3)    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

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

5)    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 rents reserved by which do not exceed fifty rupees

This Section will not apply in the following cases :

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1)  any composition deed; or .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

2)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 in so far 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

3      any endorsement upon or transfer of any debenture issued by any such company; or

4       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

5      any decree or order of a Court 1[ 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

6      any grant of immovable property by the Government; or

7      any instrument of partition made by a Revenue- officer; or

8      any order granting a loan or instrument of collateral security granted under the Land Improvement Act, 1871 (26 of 1871 ), or the Land Improvement Loans Act, 1883 (19 of 1883 ); or

9      any order granting a loan under the Agriculturists Loans Act, 1884 (12 of 1884 ), or instrument for securing the repayment of a loan made under that Act; or

a)     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

11  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

12 any certificate of sale granted to the purchaser of any property sold by public auction by a Civil or Revenue officer

In the light of the  Section 17 of the Registration Act, the following are  some of the  case laws

In Mangan Lal Deoshi Vs. Mohammad Moinul Haque & Others [(1950) SCR 833], this Court considered a case where the effect of a decree was to create a perpetual under-lease and considered the case whether under such circumstances that decree required registration in the context of Section 17(1)(b) of the Act

In the case of Som Dev & Ors vs Rati Ram & Anr on 6 September, 2006, the Hon’ble Supreme court has held that as a family arrangement the relinquishment had followed and on that basis the decree in the earlier suit recognizing that arrangement did not require registration

Registration of Lease deed:  .  For example, the lease deed more than 11 months requires  registration  .  Many corporate  are not willing to  register  lease deed due to   the fact that we need to pay  registration  charges  not only  for advance  but also for  rent for the  whole period,. The charges vary  from state to state.  In the absence of registration,  both lessor and lessee will not be entitled for  any claim  for damages or losses.  In Andhra Pradesh, it is now mandatory to get all   lease deeds to be registered in the sub registrar's office. They  have segregated into three categories  - lease deed upto 11 months, lease deed between 1 year and 100 years and  above 100 years The charges are vary for the above periods. Both the lessor and lessee have to be present themselves before the Sub Registrar to have the deed executed

Conclusion: It is evident that  if mandatory documents are  not registered, the person cannot claim loss or damages   . It is always advisable  to get a Lease deed/Rent deed  registered in the Sub Registrar to avoid complication in future .