Ong Hock Sim FJ (delivering the judgment of the Court) :

We propose to deal with these three appeals together. As agreed by Encik Zulkifli bin Mahmood on behalf of the Inland Revenue in his Written Submission to the Court in FC Civil Appeals Nos 109 and 110 of 1973, they "refer to the same subject matter" and "the respondent had no objection" to all the appeals being heard at the same time.

The Court is of opinion that if the decision is in favour of the appellants in Civil Appeal No. 104 of 1973, then it must follow that the prohibitory orders registered on 27 December 1973 would be ineffective by reason of the presentation of the Memorandum of Transfer and associated documents on 14 December 1973 and ought therefore to be set aside.

Civil AppealNo. 104 of 1973 is concerned with the validity of the Registrar's caveat entered on 11 October 1972 in Serial No. 156/72, Registrar's caveat Vol. 38, Fol. 149 . This caveat was lodged pursuant to a letter from Inland Revenue dated 2 October 1972 (p. 34) to the effect that the Penolong Pengarah Hasil Dalam Negeri, Johore Bahru, had requested the Pendaftar Hak Milek, Johore to enter a Registrar's caveat in respect of the lands stated in that letter under s. 320(1)(b) of the National Land Code for protecting the interests of the Federation.

The facts need but be briefly stated. On 30 August 1972 the first appellant entered into an agreement with Li-Ta Co. (Private) Ltd., a company incorporated in the Republic of Singapore (hereinafter called the vendors) for the purchase of certain lands set out in the Schedule thereto in area 5,222 acres three roods 32 poles more or less, together with the buildings, plant, machinery and vehicles as specified in the provisional inventory at a total price of dollars six million ($6,000,000). Completion date was on or before 30 September 1972. On 22 September 1972 the first appellants and their nominees, the second appellants, paid the full purchase price to the vendors which executed due transfers of the lands in favour of the second appellants, the nominees of the first appellants, and gave delivery of the issue documents of title and two Discharges of Charge to their solicitors. On the same date, possession of the said lands was given to the second appellants. On 14 December 1972 the Memorandum of Transfer and the titles and discharges were presented for registration, after adjudication for stamp duty purposes, (being registration No. 8401/72 in File of Transfer vol. 534 Fol. 52). On 19 December 1972 the Government of Malaysia obtained two judgments against the vendors in Civil Suits Nos. 116 and 117 of 1972 in the High Court at Muar for income tax due from the vendors to the Comptroller of Inland Revenue, Malaysia. Pursuant thereto, the Government obtained two prohibitory orders, one entered on the register documents of title to seven of the nine pieces and the other on the remaining two pieces. On 15 March 1973 the appellants were informed that the instruments had been rejected on the ground that the Registrar's caveat had been entered against the nine pieces of land on 11 October 1972 in vol 38 Folio 149. By Originating Motion No. 4 of 1973 dated 12 June 1973 the appellants applied for an Order directing the respondent (the Registrar) to cancel the caveat and to register the transfer and discharges. This was dismissed on 23 August 1973 hence this appeal.

The main, and we consider, the most cogent ground of appeal, is whether the caveat was rightly and properly entered. It had been entered pursuant to a letter received dated 2 October 1972 from the Inland Revenue to the effect that the income tax liability of the vendors for future years would be increased and that, in order to avoid payment of such tax, the vendors had sold and were intending to sell other lands, and it was necessary, to stop the lands being transferred, to enter a caveat without delay. As the Legal Adviser appearing on behalf of the Registrar of Titles said: "The Feder