Stamp duty on Sale Certificates must be assessed only on the sale price in the certificate, excluding market value considerations.

JUDGMENT

R.SURESH KUMAR, J This intra-Court appeal has arisen out of the order passed by the Writ Court, dated 08.08.2017 made in W.P.No.14315 of 2017.

2. The short facts, which are required to be noticed for the disposal of this appeal, reads thus:-

The respondent/writ petitioner purchased an immovable property to an extent of 9.49½ Acres comprised in various Survey Numbers of Veerapandi Village, Tiruppur South, Tiruppur District, in a public auction conducted by the State Bank of India under the SARFAESI proceedings, for a total Sale Consideration of Rs.18,36,00,000/-.

3. On completion of the said sale, by way of auction purchase, the Recovery Officer of the Bank had issued the Sale Certificate dated 16.09.2016 to the respondent. The respondent had presented the Sale Certificate for registration before the 4th appellant on 15.12.2016. Initially, the Sale Certificate was kept as a pending document in Doc.No.P.18/2016. Thereafter, it was registered as Doc.No.5392/2016 on 27.12.2016 by the 4th appellant. Even though it was registered, the document has not been released to the respondent and the 4th appellant has also passed an order dated 06.04.2017, where, the 4th appellant considered the sale taken place pursuant to the SARFAESI proceedings only as a conveyance and hence, as per Article 23 of I Schedule of the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, (In short, 'Stamp Act') called upon the respondent to pay a sum of Rs.6,15,06,153/- towards additional stamp duty.

4. Challenging the said proceedings, dated 06.04.2017, issued by the

4th appellant, the respondent herein had approached the Writ Court and filed the said writ petition with a prayer to quash the same and to give a direction to the 4th appellant to release the document and to return back the excess of 3% of stamp duty collected by the 4th appellant for having registered the said document. That is how the Writ Petition came up before the Writ Court, which was considered and decided by the learned Judge through the impugned order dated 08.08.2017.

5. Questioning the said order passed by the learned Judge and in support of the present appeal Mr.B.Vijay, learned Additional Government Pleader, appearing for the appellants would contend that, insofar as the registration sought for to the Sale Certificate issued by the bank authorities is concerned, since it is a conveyance or transfer of property by way of sale, the stamp duty as well as the registration charges as has been fixed by the provisions of the Stamp Act as well as the Registration Act, are to be collected.

6. In this context, he would further submit that, the stamp duty to be collected for such instrument to be registered is concerned, it must be on the basis of the rate fixed under Article 23 of Schedule I of the Stamp Act. Therefore, as per Article 23 of Schedule I of the Stamp Act, what has been fixed as the percentage of stamp duty would be collected. That apart, a registration charge would be collected and these stamp duty would be collected only on the basis of the market value / guideline value of the property concerned and not on the basis of the rate quoted in the Sale Certificate. Therefore, the learned Additional Government Pleader would contend that, the said demand made by the 4th appellant by issuing the communication dated 06.04.2017, making a demand from the respondent for paying the sum of Rs.6,15,06,153/- is justifiable, he contended.

7. Elaborating his arguments, the learned Additional Government Pleader appearing for the appellants would contend that, the stamp duty was originally 8% under Article 23 of Schedule I of the Stamp Act, for urban areas like, Chennai, Coimabatore etc. In all other areas or documents, it is 7% which has subsequently been reduced from 2012 as 5%. Therefore, there must be a 5% stamp duty to be levied for the registration of the Sale Certificate. Apart from that, 2% additional stamp duty by way of surcharge can be imposed, that has also been imposed. Apart from that, registration charge