Revision Order on Adyar Pending Document P-154/2019

What the proceedings decide

Proceedings No. ப.மு.13511/ப்பி1/2020, dated 6 May 2021, were issued by the Head of the Tamil Nadu Registration Department and Chief Controlling Revenue Authority after a revision petition by R. Chandrasekar. The petition challenged the Adyar Sub-Registrar's proceedings No. 215/2020, dated 9 March 2020, concerning pending document P-154/2019.

The pending document was a consent deed dated 9 July 2019. It was executed by Kalyani Rajagopalan and her daughters, Madhu Gurusamy and Jaiswid, in favour of R. Chandrasekar. The property value recorded in the case details was Rs.2,85,00,000, and the consent deed carried stamp duty of Rs.150.

Background to the dispute

The Adyar Sub-Registrar, acting at District Registrar level, concluded that the consent deed transferred the combined three-fourths share of T.C. Rajagopalan's wife and two daughters. On that basis, the document was treated as a sale deed rather than merely a consent deed, and additional stamp duty and charges were assessed.

The revision petitioner argued that:

• Sale deed 3005/2017 had already transferred the interests of all co-owners.
• The co-owners had authorised T.C. Rajagopalan through registered powers of attorney numbered 156/2015, 1469/2015 and 1468/2015.
• Sale deed 3005/2017 accidentally omitted details of those powers of attorney and T.C. Rajagopalan's authority to act for the other family co-owners.
• The consent deed was executed only to record the omitted details and confirm consent to the earlier sale.
• Stamp duty and registration fees based on the property value had already been paid on sale deed 3005/2017.

Reasoning and result

The Head of the Tamil Nadu Registration Department and Chief Controlling Revenue Authority found that sale deed 3005/2017 and the consent deed concerned the same purchaser and the same property. They could therefore be treated as documents forming one transaction.

The authority concluded that the consent deed was an ancillary document under section 4 of the Indian Stamp Act. The proceedings state that the principal document must bear the appropriate stamp duty and that the remaining ancillary documents require stamp duty of Rs.5. The revision petition was accepted, and the Adyar Sub-Registrar's assessment order was set aside.

Who may find it relevant

Proceedings No. ப.மு.13511/ப்பி1/2020 directly concern the named parties and documents. They may also be useful to buyers and professionals examining whether a later confirmation or consent deed merely completes an earlier transaction or independently transfers ownership.