(Per : HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE V. M. SAHAI) Draft amendment is allowed. The appellants to carry out the draft amendment during the course of the day.
2. We have heard Mr. N. J. Shah, learned Assistant Government Pleader appearing for the appellants and Ms. P.P. Laheri, learned counsel appearing for the respondent. Since the facts are not disputed, counsel for the parties agree that this Letters Patent Appeal may be disposed of at the admission stage as it arises out of interim orders passed by the Learned Single Judge. With the consent of the learned counsel for the parties, we have taken up this Letters Patent Appeal for final disposal at the admission stage itself.
3. The respondent herein has presented the Sale Deed for registration before the Deputy Collector, Stamp Duty Valuation. Under the provisions of Bombay Stamp Act, 1958, the Deputy Collector was of the opinion that there was deficiency in the stamp duty and, therefore, he demanded additional stamp duty from the respondent. Thereafter, instead of filing any appeal or revision, the respondent has straightway filed the writ petition being Special Civil Application No.17211 of 2011 wherein the Learned Single Judge by interim order dated 16.12.2011 has directed that the respondent will furnish a Bank Guarantee for differential amount which has been quantified at Rs.1,01,12,000/- as mentioned in the impugned order dated 19.9.2011. It was further directed that the Bank Guarantee shall be furnished by the respondent before the Authority on or before 31.12.2011. It was further directed that on furnishing the Bank Guarantee by the respondent, the appellants shall release the original Registered documents of the respondent regarding the land in question. Thereafter, the Learned Single Judge passed orders on 10.1.2012 and 17.1.2012 directing the appellants to comply with the order dated 16.12.2011. These three interim orders are under challenge in the present Letters Patent Appeal.
4. It is a well settled law that by way of interim relief, final relief cannot be granted. Further, once the document has been impounded for deficiency of stamp duty, either unless the stamp duty is paid or some superior Court directs after adjudicating on merits of the case that the document be registered on the stamp duty furnished by the respondent, only then the document could be returned. The original Sale Deed filed for registration before the Registering Authority could not be returned back to the respondent merely on furnishing Bank Guarantee. In this view of the matter, the impugned interim orders dated 16.12.2011, 10.01.2012 and 17.01.2012 passed by the Learned Single Judge in Special Civil Application No.17211 of 2011 cannot be maintained.
5. In the result, this Letters Patent Appeal succeeds and is allowed. The interim orders dated 16.12.2011, 10.01.2012 and 17.01.2012 passed by the Learned Single Judge in Special Civil Application No.17211 of 2011 are set aside. The matter is remanded to the Learned Single Judge to decide the writ petition on merits expeditiously subject to His Lordship's convenience. Parties to bear their own costs.
6. In view of disposal of Letters Patent Appeal, Civil Application also stands accordingly disposed of.
7. The Bank Guarantee furnished by the respondent on 20.12.2011 to the appellants may be returned on making an application by the respondent. Any observations made by us in this judgment shall not be binding on any of the authorities who will be deciding the matter.
Sd/-
[V.
M. SAHAI, J.] Sd/-
[A.
J. DESAI, J.] Savariya Top