IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT HYDERABAD FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AND THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH THURSDAY, THE SIXTEENTH DAY OF OCTOBER TWO THOUSAND AND FOURTEEN Present HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.NAVEEN RAO WRIT PETITION No.30892 of 2014 Between:
K. Shiva Prakash, S/o. Late Rudra Pillai, Aged about 57 years, Occ: Cultivation, R/o. D.No.18-8-49/4, 1st Floor, Madhuranagar, Tirupati, Chittoor District & 2 others .. Petitioners AND The Joint Sub-Registrar-I, Sri Balaji Registration District, Tirupati, Chittoor District & 4 others .. Respondents The Court made the following:
HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.NAVEEN RAO WRIT PETITION No.30892 of 2014 ORDER:
The case of the petitioners is that petitioners 1 and 2 purchased land to an extent of 370.41 square yards and 222.22 square yards in Survey No.13, situated at Avilala Village, Tirupati Rural Mandal, Chittoor District and the 3rd petitioner intended to gift his land to an extent of Ac. 1.00 cents in Survey No.13, situated at Avilala Vilalge, Tirupati Rural Mandal, Chittoor District, to his daughter O. Padmalatha. The petitioners approached the Joint Sub-Registrar-I, Sri Balaji Registration District, Tirupati, Chittoor District (1st respondent), and expressed their intention to register the Deeds of Conveyance in their favour. The 1st respondent informed them that the said property cannot be admitted for registration since it is classified as ‘endowment land’ as per the letters of the Commissioner, Endowments Department (3rd respondent) vide Rc.No.N1/27520/2009, dated 19.04.2010, and Lr.No.N1/10872/2014-1, dated 06.05.2014.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the very same objection was raised on earlier occasion relying upon the same document. The said communication by the Commissioner, dated 19.04.2010, was challenged in W.P.No.10068 of 2013. The defence taken by the department in the said writ petition was that since the lands were classified as endowment lands, the registration is prohibited under Section 22-A(1)(c) of the Registration Act, 1908 (for short ‘the Act’), and, therefore, the registration is not permissible. On consideration of the provisions of Section 22-A of the Act and the communication of the Commissioner, dated 19.04.2010, this Court held that in the absence of a notification under Section 22-A(2) of the Act, it is not open to the Endowments Department to communicate a list of properties allegedly owned by the religious institutions by way of a letter and trace the power to do so under Section 22-A(1)(c) of the Act. This Court further held that the said communication is without jurisdiction and cannot be sustained and accordingly set aside the communication, dated 19.04.2010, and consequently directed the Joint Sub-Registrar, Tirupati, Chittoor District, to receive and process the documents presented by the petitioners therein in respect of their lands in Survey No.242/B of Tirupati Village, without reference to said communication.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioners, therefore, submits that in view of the decision of this Court invalidating the letter, dated 19.04.2010, the rejection by the 1st respondent to process the documents for registration of the lands purchased by the petitioners in Survey No.13 for the very same reason is illegal.
4. For the reasons alike as contained in judgment of this Court in W.P.10068 of 2013, dated 03.06.2013, this Writ Petition is also disposed of directing the Joint Sub-Registrar-I, Sri Balaji Registration District, Tirupati, Chittoor District (1st respondent), to receive and process the documents presented by the petitioners for registration in accordance with the provisions of the Registration Act, 1908, and the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, without reference to the letters of the Commissioner, dated 19.04.2010 and 06.05.2014. If, however the 1st respondent is of the opinion that the documents presented for registration warrant denial, he shall pass orders in writing indicating the reasons for such refusal and communicate the same to the party in accordance with Section 71 of the Registration Act, 1908. There shall be no order as to costs. Miscellaneous petitions, if any, pending in this writ petition, shall stand closed.
P.NAVEEN RAO, J Date: 16th October, 2014 KL HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.NAVEEN RAO WRIT PETITION No.30892 of 2014 Date: 16th October, 2014 KL