The main legal principle established in the judgment is that a sale certificate issued by a Civil or Revenue Officer does not require compulsory registration and should be filed in Book No. 1 as per Section 89(4) of the Registration Act, obviating the need for further deed of transfer or payment of stamp duty.

JUDGMENT :

MANJU RANI CHAUHAN, J.

1. Heard Mr. Avneesh Tripathi, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. Ravindra Kumar Tripathi, learned Standing Counsel for the State-respondents.

2. This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner with a prayer to call for the record from the respondent no. 3 in impugned letter dated 06.10.2023 bearing No. SMN-Mzp-2023 to quash the same and direct the respondent no. 3 to enter the sale certificate dated 15.09.2021 in Book No. 1 read with Section 89(4) of the Registration Act 1908 without insisting any further fee.

3. Brief facts of the case are that; one HUVE Pharma Sea (Pune) Pvt. Ltd. filed an application under Section 9 of the Code against M/s Amrit Fees Ltd., i.e. corporate debtor before the Company Law Tribunal, on which the Tribunal passed an order dated 19.02.2021 for the liquidation of the corporate debtor and one Sunil Mohan Acharya was appointed as the liquidator. The petitioner company was incorporated on 09.07.2021 under the provisions of Companies Act, 2013, therefore, he submits its bids dated 16.07.2021 in the auction in respect of the assets of the corporate debtor (in liquidation). The petitioner company was participated in the auction and was finally declared as the highest bidder. While the liquidation was accepted to the parties as per the order dated 12.08.2021, one of the financial creditor, i.e. Punjab National Bank filed an appeal before the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (in short “NCLAT”), under Section 61 of the Code against the order dated 12.08.2021 passed by the Tribunal. The same was allowed in favour of the creditor bank on 30.11.2021. The aforesaid order was assailed by the petitioner before the Hon'ble Apex Court by filing Civil Appeal No. 7906 of 2021 (EVA Agro Feeds Private Limited vs. Punjab National Bank), which was finally allowed in favour of the petitioner vide order dated 06.09.2023. The sale certificate has already been issued in favour of the petitioner on 15.09.2021, thus the aforesaid sale deed was finally affirmed vide order dated 06.09.2023 passed by the Apex Court.

4. Thereafter, the official liquidator wrote a letter dated 03.10.2023 to respondent no. 3, i.e. Sub Registrar, Tehsil Chunar, District-Mirzapur with a request to the concerned officer intimating that the sale certificate was issued in terms of the order passed by the Tribunal dated 12.08.2021 and a specific request was made to accept the filing of the said sale certificate dated 15.09.2021 in Book No. 1 under Section 89(4) of the Indian Registration Act, 1908. The officials of the petitioner company approached the office of the respondent no. 3 and requested that the process of mutation may be completed in favour of the petitioner company on the basis of sale certificate dated 15.09.2021. The respondent no. 3 advised petitioner that in order to get mutation done, he would be under obligation for paying the necessary stamp duty under the Indian Stamp Act. The petitioner tried to explain the respondent no. 4 that in terms of the settled proposition of law, any such sale certificate issued under the proceedings initiated by a court, are liable for the benefit of Section 89(4) of the Indian Registration Act. When the respondent no. 4 was not convinced by the explanation as given by the petitioner company, they approached the respondent no. 2; District Magistrate, Mirzapur, apprising about the factual situation. The District Magistrate marked the aforesaid representation to the respondent no. 4 and directed to submit a report in respect thereof.

5. Subsequently, the respondent no. 4 vide order dated 06.10.2023 communicated that the mutation in favour of the petitioner company is possible only after deposition of the requisite stamp fee. Firstly, on the basis of the order passed by the Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Vishwanath Agrawal vs. State of U.P. and Others, 2004 (56) ALR 264 and secondly, there was a circular issued by the Inspector General Registration/