The main legal point established is that government guidelines on valuation are not conclusive, and the market value should be determined based on actual consideration and economic equilibrium, with the Collector's duty to assess based on evidence.

K. C. JAGADEB, J.

( 1 ) THE petitioner is a person belonging to Scheduled Caste and has obtained permission under Section 22 of the O. L. R. Act to sell a piece of homstead land situated in Bhubaneswar Master Plan Area to one Smt. Labanyabati Samantray and the said permission has been accorded to him by the Revenue Officer in Revenue Miscellaneous Case No. 450/88 by order dated 6-4-1989.

( 2 ) HAVING found that there is already a Government executive instruction issued from the Government under the signature of the Additional Secretary to Government to the Inspector General of Registration, Orissa, Cuttack fixing the market value of the land in Bhubaneswar Master Plan area and ensuring the market value fixed for the revenue villages under Bhubaneswar Market area and Town Planning to be set forth in instrument and directing the impounding of the said instrument of transfer by the registering officers by reference to Collector under Section 47 (A) of the Indian Stamp Act even if the said market value is not shown on the document, has challenged the same with a prayer to quash the said notification of the Government dated 17-2-1990 as per Annexure-1 of this present writ application and with a further prayer that the valuation indicated in the permission certificate of the Revenue Officer under Section 22 of the O. L. R. Act be accepted as the valuation of the document and stamp duty shall be paid only on that valuation.

( 3 ) THE Opposite Party Nos. 1 and 2, namely the State of Orissa, represented by the Secretary, Revenue and Excise Department and Inspector General of Registration, Orissa have jointly filed a counter to the writ application. In the counter, they have justified the instruction contained in Annexure-1 and have stated that it was within the scope, ambit and jurisdiction of the Government of Orissa to issue such instruction which would help the registering authority to know the exact valuation of the land in Master Plan area, Bhubaneswar. By this method, people who are showing low valuation and thereby evading stamp duty on registration should be checked.

( 4 ) WE allowed the learned counsel for both the parties to argue this case at length as the decision will not only affect the petitioner alone but also other people facing similar situation.

( 5 ) SECTION 47-A of the Indian Stamp Act was inserted to the present Act by Orissa Act 25 of 1962 and reads as follows: 47-A. Instrument under valued how to be dealt with- (1) If the registering officer appointed under the Indian Registration Act, 1908, while registering any instrument transferring any property, has reasons to believe that the value of the property or the consideration, as the case may be, has not been truly set forth in the instrument, he may, after registering such instrument, refer the same to the Collector for determination of the value or consideration, as the case may be, and the proper duty payable thereon. (2) On receipt of a reference under subsection (1) the Collector shall, after giving the parties a reasonable opportunity of being heard and after holding an enquiry in such manner as may be prescribedbed by rules made under the Act, determine the value or consideration and the duty as aforesaid and the deficient amount of duty, if any, shall be payable by the person liable to pay the duty. (3) The Collector may suo motu within two years from the date of registration of any instrument not already referred to him under sub-section (1), call for and examine the instrument for the purpose of satisfying himself as to the correctness of its value or consideration, as the case may be, and the duty payable thereon and if after such examination, he has reasons to believe that the value or consideration has not been truly set forth in the instrument, he may determine the value or consideration and the duty as aforesaid in accordance with the procedure provided for in sub-section (2); and the deficient amount of duty, if any, shall be payable by the pe