Refusal by the registration authorities to entertain documents relating to the lands in Sy.No.963 of Palamaner Village and Mandal, Chittoor District, is called in question in these cases.

The petitioners in W.P.No.12412 of 2013 are concerned with an extent of land in subdivided Sy.No.963/3 while the petitioners in W.P.No.12875 of 2013 relate their claim to certain plots in sub-divided Sy.No.963/5A of Palamaner Village and Mandal.

The Sub-Registrar, Palamaner, filed counter-affidavits in the two cases stating that the subject lands were notified as Wakf properties as per the list furnished by the Chief Executive Officer, A.P.State Wakf Board (hereinafter, ‘the Board’), under his letter dated 12.10.2012, to the Collector and District Magistrate, Chittoor District. In turn, the Collector, Chittoor District, addressed letter dated 23.11.2012 to the District Registrar, Chittoor District, leading to the issuance of Memo No.G1/853/2012 dated 24.11.2012 to all the Sub-Registrars in the district to abide by the instructions of the District Collector, Chittoor District. These instructions were to the effect that the Sub-Registrars were not to register documents relating to Wakf properties without obtaining a ‘No Objection Certificate’ from the Board. A list of Wakf properties in Chittoor District was enclosed therewith and included Sy.No.963, admeasuring Ac.19-02 cents, of Palamaner Village and Mandal. The letter dated 12.10.2012 of the Board; the letter dated 23.11.2012 issued by the District Collector, Chittoor District; and the consequential Memo dated 24.11.2012 issued by the District Registrar, Chittoor, are challenged by the petitioners in W.P.No.12412 of 2012. Directions are sought in both the cases to the registration authorities to register the documents presented by the petitioners in respect of the subject lands.

The Board stated thus in its counters: Sy.No.963 of Palamaner Village and Mandal, Chittoor District, is a Wakf property attached to an Idgah. The particulars of the Idgah are mentioned in the Notification published in the Andhra Pradesh Gazette dated 28.06.1962 at S.No.2936. However, particulars of the survey number and the extent were not reflected in the said Notification though the Survey Commissioner’s Report reflects that Sy.No.963 of the Village, admeasuring Ac.19-02 cents, was the property endowed to this Idgah. According to the Board, the revenue records also reflected that this was an inam land. The Board pointed out that the registered sale deed bearing Document No.1384 of 1929, relied upon by the petitioners in W.P.No.12412 of 2013, also described the subject lands as khairathi inam (charitable gift). The Board therefore stated that any number of registered transactions which took place in respect of these lands after 1929 would not dilute their status as Wakf property and justified its action in advising the registration authorities to desist from entertaining documents for registration in respect of the subject lands without its consent.

Perusal of the Gazette Notification dated 28.06.1962 reflects that S.No.2936 thereof pertained to an Idgah at Palamaner, but the columns pertaining to the details of the property relating thereto are left blank and the column relating to the gross-income bears the entry ‘Nil’. The Survey Report, upon which the Board places strong reliance, bears the signature of the Assistant Commissioner with the date 27.11.1955. Therein, the Assistant Commissioner recorded the name of the Wakf as ‘Idgah-Sunni’ but thereunder, he stated that the name of the Wakf was not known. According to this Report, the original Wakf deeds bear T.D.Nos.157 and 811 of Palamaner. In column 12 of the Report, captioned ‘Particulars of the Wakf or properties comprised in the Wakf with title-deeds and documents relating thereto’, he noted that the name of the Village was Palamaner, with T.D.Nos.157 and 811. As regards Sy.No.963, admeasuring Ac.19-02 cents, under the column relating to ‘Annual gros