Mohali tehsildar shunted out over registry delay

Acting tough against red tapism and public inconvenience, the Punjab Government has withdrawn registration powers from the Tehsildar (Joint Sub-Registrar), Mohali, for refusing to register a property conveyance deed on flimsy grounds, sending a strong message of zero tolerance for harassment in public offices.

In an immediate action, Additional Chief Secretary-cum-Financial Commissioner Revenue (ACS-cum-FCR) Anurag Verma ordered the withdrawal of registration powers of Joint Sub-Registrar-1 Harmanpreet Singh Cheema after it emerged that he had violated the Easy Registry guidelines and caused avoidable harassment to citizens.

According to the official order, a copy of which is with The Tribune, Verma had received a complaint that the officer was harassing people during the registration of conveyance deeds. He held a call conference with the Deputy Commissioner, Mohali, the complainant and the officer concerned.

During the interaction, it came to light that the Joint Sub-Registrar had refused to register the deeds on the frivolous objection that they were not stamped by the advocate who had drafted them, a requirement that is not mandated under the rules.

Because of this unwarranted objection, the complainant had to run from pillar to post for nearly two hours to get the document registered, the order noted.

The Additional Chief Secretary-cum-Financial Commissioner Revenue observed that the Easy Registry project was launched by the Punjab Government to eliminate corruption from sub-registrar offices and to provide a hassle-free experience to citizens through clear-cut guidelines. The conduct of the officer was found to be in violation of these guidelines, both in letter and in spirit.

As a result, the registration powers of Cheema have been withdrawn with immediate effect, and he has been deputed for one month to the office of the Director Land Records. He will get training on the Easy Registry scheme there.

To prevent any disruption of public work, the Mohali Deputy Commissioner, Komal Mittal, acting on the directions of the ACS-cum-FCR, has appointed Joint Sub-Registrar-2 Harsh Garg to look after the work till further orders.

The order also issued strict directions to all Deputy Commissioners, Sub-Registrars and Joint Sub-Registrars across the state, stating that whatever scrutiny of documents is required must be completed at the pre-scrutiny stage and that executants should not be harassed at the time of presentation of deeds for registration. It further directed that all efforts should be made to complete registration within 30 minutes of token generation at the help desk.

Significantly, the Mohali tehsil sub-registrar office is among the busiest revenue offices in Punjab in terms of the number of documents registered and revenue generated. In December 2025 alone, as many as 1,835 documents were registered in Mohali, involving a consideration amount of around Rs 1,000 crore, underlining the importance of smooth, citizen-friendly functioning of the office.

The swift action by the state government in Cheema’s case is being seen as a clear signal that any deviation from the Easy Registry guidelines and any form of harassment of the public will invite strict and immediate action.