Registration

There is great deal of misconception about registration of flat in a REGISTERED cooperative housing society. I reproduce below certain sections of the Indian Registration Act and Maharashtra Cooperative Societies Act along with the information posted by the Inspector General of Registration, Maharashtra, in his website. I wanted a specific answer from the registration office as to the authority under which such flats MUST BE GOT REGISTERED. Not one of them is willing to come out with the answer probably because government lose enormous amount of money by way of registration charges. There is no doubt that such registration is not required yet the general practice is that everybody goes through this drill because nobody wants to get into trouble for a few thousands of rupees when he purchases property worth lacs of rupees. Let us discuss this subject in detail and I shall welcome opinions of my learned friends with judgements, if any. Anil Agrawal Extract from the Indian Registration Act, 1908. Extract from the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960. Information contained in the Website of the Inspector General of Registration, Maharashtra (as on 9/3/2008) 17. Documents of which registration is compulsory (1) The following documents shall be registered, if the property to which they relate is situate in a district in which, and if they have been executed on or after the date on which, Act No. XVI of 1864, or the Indian Registration Act, 1866, or the Indian Registration Act, 1871, or the Indian Registration Act, 1877 or this Act came or comes into force, namely:- (a) instruments of gift of immovable property; (b) other non-testamentary instruments which purport or operate to create, declare, assign, limit or extinguish, whether in present or in future, any right, title or interest, whether vested or contingent, of the value of one hundred rupees, and upwards, to or in immovable property; (c) non-testamentary instruments which acknowledge the receipt or payment of any consideration on account of the creation, declaration, assignment, limitation or extinction of any such right, title or interest; and (d) leases of immovable property from year to year, or for any term exceeding one year, or reserving a yearly rent; 12[(e) non-testamentary instruments transferring or assigning any decree or order of a court or any award when such decree or order or award purports or operates to create, declare, assign, limit or extinguish, whether in present or in future, any right, title or interest, whether vested or contingent, of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards, to or in immovable property:] PROVIDED that the State Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, exempt from the operation of this sub-section any leases executed in any district, or part of a district, the terms granted by which do not exceed five years and the annual rent reserved by which do not exceed fifty rupees. (2) Nothing in clauses (b) and (c) of sub-section (1) applies to- (i) any composition-deed; or (ii) any instrument relating to shares in a joint Stock Company, notwithstanding that the assets of such company consist in whole or in part of immovable property; or (iii) any debenture issued by any such company and not creating, declaring, assigning, limiting or extinguishing any right, title or interest, to or in immovable property except insofar as it entitles the holder to the security afforded by a registered instrument whereby the company has mortgaged, conveyed or otherwise transferred the whole or part of its immovable property or any interest therein to trustees upon trust for the benefit of the holders of such debentures; or (iv) any endorsement upon or transfer of any debenture issued by any such company; or (v) any document not itself creating, declaring, assigning, limiting or extinguishing any right, title or interest of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards to or in immovable property, but merely creating a right to obtain another document which will, when executed, create, declare, assign, limit or extinguish any such right, title or interest; or (vi) any decree or order of a court 13[except a decree or order expressed to be made on a compromise and comprising immovable property other than that which is the subject-matter of the suit or proceeding;] or (vii) any grant of immovable property by government; or (viii) any instrument of partition made by a revenue-officer; or (ix) any order granting a loan or instrument of collateral security granted under the Land Improvement Act, 1871, or the Land Improvement Loans Act, 1883; or (x) any order granting a loan under the Agriculturists Loans Act, 1884, or instrument for securing the repayment of a loan made under that Act; or 14[(xa) any order made under the Charitable Endowments Act, 1890, (6 of 1890) vesting any property in a Treasurer of Charitable Endowments or divesting any such treasurer of any property; or] (xi) any endorsement on a mortgage-deed acknowledging the payment of the whole or any part of the mortgage-money, and any other receipt for payment of money due under a mortgage when the receipt does not purport to extinguish the mortgage; or (xii) any certificate of sale granted to the purchaser of any property sold by public auction by a civil or revenue-officer. 15[Explanation: A document purporting or operating to effect a contract for the sale of immovable property shall not be deemed to require or ever to have required registration by reason only of the fact that such document contains a recital of the payment of any earnest money or of the whole or any part of the purchase money.] (3) Authorities to adopt a son, executed after the 1st day of January, 1872, and not conferred by a will, shall also be registered. 41. Exemption from compulsory registration of instruments relating to shares and debentures of society – Nothing in clauses (b) and (c) of sub-section (1) of Section 17 of the Indian Registration Act, 1908, shall apply – (a) to any instrument relating to shares in a society, notwithstanding that the assets of the society consist in whole or in part of immovable property; or (a) to any debentures issued by any society and not creating, declaring, assigning, limiting or extinguishing any right, title or interest to or in immovable property, except insofar as it entitles the holder to the security afforded by a registered instrument whereby, the society has mortgaged, conveyed or otherwise transferred the whole or part of its immovable property, or any interest therein to trustees upon trust for the benefit of the holders of such debentures; or (a) to any endorsement upon, or transfer or, any debentures issued by any society. Q.16. Is the registration of an agreement to transfer a flat necessary after the registration of a co-operative society? No. After registration of a co-operative society the purchasers of various premises become members and shareholders of such a society, and as such the members are thereby governed under the provisions of The Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960. Under Section 41 of the Maharashtra Co-Operative societies Act, 1960, the provisions of clause (b) and (c) of sub section (1) of Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908 do not apply to any instrument relating to shares in a society although the assets of the society consist in whole or in part of immovable property. In a registered society, the member actually transfers his right in the shares held by him and consequently transfers the premises in his use, occupation and possession. Thus, it is not necessary to register such an agreement.