Sale deed cannot be cancelled by unregistered document, says HC

Saurabh Malik

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Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 3

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has made it clear that a registered document, such as a sale deed, cannot be cancelled by an unregistered document or agreement.

The ruling by Justice Bharat Bhushan Parsoon came on a regular second appeal filed by appellant Kishan Chand against respondent Amar Singh in a land sale case. Sale deed dated May 10, 1965, and mutation sanctioned pursuant to it were under challenge in the litigation. The sale deed was registered, but it was sought to be avoided by the respondent on the basis of another unregistered agreement dated December 23, 1983.

The respondent, Amar Singh, had claimed that appellant Kishan Chand had purchased land from him vide sale deed of May 1965. Going into the reason behind the cancellation, the respondent had claimed that at the time of delivery of land’s possession, both the parties found wrong description of the land. He had added Kishan Chand refused to take physical possession of the land; and the parties mutually agreed to revoke the sale deed. Such settlement of the parties was caged in a document dated December 23, 1983.

Taking up the matter, Justice Parsoon asserted immovable property valuing more than Rs 99 could only be alienated by a registered document, in view of Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908. In the case in hand, it was not disputed that the value of the property was more than Rs 99.

Thus, the cancellation of sale deed could have been done only by a registered document. Agreement dated December 23, 1983, ipso facto does not affect right, title and interest in the property in terms of sale deed. Justice Parsoon asserted: “In short, the unregistered document has no legal value. Even otherwise, sale deed being registered one could not have been cancelled by way of an unregistered document”.