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2005 Supreme(AP) 915

Andhra Pradesh High Court
Judges : A.GOPAL REDDY
Matu Subba Rao - Appellant
Versus
Ramalayam Trust Board ganapavaram, W.G.District - Respondent
CRP.Nos.1457/04 etc
Decided On : 10-07-05
Advocates Appeared :
Mr.M.V. Durga Prasad, Smt.N. Indrani

Headnote:STAMP ACT, Art.31 - REGI-STRATION ACT, Sec.17 - A.P. CHARITABLE AND HINDU RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS AND ENDOWMENTS IMMOVABLE PROPERTIES (OTHER THAN AGRICULTURAL LANDS) LEASE RULES, 1982, R.3 - CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE, Or.39, Rules1 & 2 - Petitioners, tenants filed suit for declaration of occupancy rights relating to shops and for permanent injunction basing on deed of acceptance - Trial Court refusing to mark document for want of registration and vacated ex parte injunction on ground that petitioner/plaintiffs cannot maintain suit without registering lease deed.

       Petitioners/plaintiffs contend that it is mutually agreed between Trust Board and themselves that shops would be handedover to them on date of opening after reconstruction and accordingly they entered in to shops and are in possession.

       Rule 3 of A.P. Endowments Immovable Properties Leases and Licenses Rules, 203, contemplates that lease shall be made by way of public auction or with permission of Commissioner to grant lease otherwise than by way of public auction - In this case, admittedly no permission granted by competent authority as contem-plated under R.3 and hence not open to petitioners to contend that they occupied premises and are in possession and are entitled to protect their possession - Merely agreement to deliver possession will not amount to constructive possession, unless same is acted upon as per R.3.

       Since plaintiffs failed to establish prima facie case that they are in lawful possession, not entitled to order of injunction - CRP, dismissed.

( 1 ) SINCE the issue arises for consideration in all these revisions is one and the same, they can be disposed of by a common order.

( 2 ) THE revision petitioners, who claim to have been in occupation of the shops belonging to the Ramalayam Trust Board -1st respondent, instituted O. S. No. 650 of 2003 for declaration that they are the tenants and are having occupancy rights in respect of the schedule property i. e. , shops and for permanent injunction restraining the defendants, their agents from interfering with their peaceful possession and enjoyment of the schedule property, unless and until the defendants resort to due process for their eviction. Pending disposal of the suit, they have filed Interlocutory Applications under Order 39 Rules 1 and 2 CPC seeking an ex parte prohibitory injunction against the respondents restraining them from interfering with the petitioners peaceful possession and enjoyment of the schedule property. In the said suit, the lower Court granted ad interim ex pane injunction and when the IAs. were taken up for hearing, the petitioners, who alleged to be the tenants, intended to mark a document, namely, deed for acceptance, dated 15-5-2003, as an exhibit, for which, the respondents/defendants objected stating that it is not sufficiently stamped and it requires registration under article 31 of the Stamp Act and Section 17 of the Registration Act. The lower Court sustained the said objection, vacated the ad interim ex parte injunction and dismissed the I. A. holding that the agreement, if any, is only to let out the shop premises and that the suit itself is for the relief of declaration that the plaintiffs are the tenants and they were issued lease deeds and that without registering the lease deeds, which is made compulsory in view of the amendment made to Section 17 of the registration Act (AP Act 4 of 1999) with effect from 1-4-1999, the plaintiffs cannot maintain the suit nor any declaration can be granted in their favour and accordingly, they are not entitled to the order of ex parte prohibitory injunction. Aggrieved by the same, the present revisions are filed.

( 3 ) LEARNED Counsel for the petitioners strenuously contends that since the landlord and the tenants entered into an agreement, whereunder, the tenants agreed to vacate the premises and after reconstruction, the landlord agreed to handover the premises to the tenants, the same need not be registerable under Section 17 (1) (b) of the registration Act. In this regard, the learned counsel relied upon the judgment of this court reported in Sohanlal v. Madsetti kistaiah, 1988 (2) ALT 354. Learned counsel further contends that the Court while granting leave for production of the documents cannot go into the admissibility or relevancy of the documents, but it can only be gone into at the time of hearing of the suit, as held by this Court in a judgment reported in Sirugudi Adinarayana v. Bodla mariamma, 2004 (1) ALD 440.

( 4 ) PER contra, the learned Counsel for the 1st respondent would contend that this Court in WVMP No. 4115 of 2003 in wpmp No. 28531 of 2003 in WP No. 22774 of 2003 filed in the form of public interest litigation, made the stay absolute refusing to vacate the direction issued in the WPMP, whereunder, the respondents were directed not to lease out the property, otherwise, than in accordance with Rule 3 of the Andhra pradesh Charitable and Hindu Religious institutions and Endowments Immovable properties (other than Agricultural Lands) lease Rules, 1982. Therefore, unless an open auction granting leasehold rights after obtaining the approval, is conducted and the property is allotted to the petitioners, they cannot claim any tenancy rights over the suit schedule property.

( 5 ) PRIMA facie, the averments made in the plaint disclose that while the existing tenants were vacating the premises for reconstruction of shops, it was mutually agreed between the Trust Board and themselves that shops would be handed over to them on the da









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