INDIAN STAMP AND THE REGISTRATION (TAMIL NADU AMENDMENT) ACT, 1987

INDIAN STAMP AND THE REGISTRATION (TAMIL NADU AMENDMENT) ACT, 1987

Preamble - INDIAN STAMP AND THE REGISTRATION (TAMIL NADU AMENDMENT) ACT, 1987

THE INDIAN STAMP AND THE REGISTRATION (TAMIL NADU AMENDMENT) ACT, 1987

[Act No. 38 of 1987]

[24th September, 1987]

PREAMBLE

An Act further to amend the Indian Stamp Act 1899 and the Registration Act, 1908 in their application to the State of Tamil Nadu.

BE it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Tamil Nadu in the Thirty-eighth Year of the Republic of India as follows:--

Section 1 - Short title, extent and commencement

(1)     This Act may be called the Indian Stamp and the Registration (Tamil Nadu Amendment) Act, 1987.

(2)     It extends to the whole of the State of Tamil Nadu.

(3)     It shall come into force on such date as the State Government may, by notification, appoint and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act.

Section 2 - Amendment of Central Act II of 1899

In the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 (Central Act II of 1899),--

(1)     after section 33, the following section shall be inserted, namely:--

"33-A. Recovery of deficit stamp duty.--

(1)     Notwithstanding anything contained in section 33 or in any other provisions of this Act, if, after the registration of any instrument under the Registration Act, 1908 (Central Act XVI of 1908), it is found that the proper stamp duty payable under this Act in respect of such instrument has not been paid or has been insufficiently paid, such duty or the deficit, as the case may be, may, on a certificate from the Registrar of the district under the Registration Act 1908 (Central Act XVI of 1908) be recovered from the person, liable to pay the duty, as an arrear of land revenue:

Provided that no such certificate shall be granted unless due inquiry is made and such person is given an opportunity of being heard:

Provided further that no such inquiry shall be commenced after the expiry of three years from the date of registration of the instrument.

(2)     The certificate of the Registrar of the district under sub-section (1) shall, subject only to appeal under sub-section (3), be final and shall not be called in question in any court or before any authority.

(3)     Any person aggrieved by a certificate of the Registrar of the district under sub-section (1) may appeal to the Chief Controlling Revenue Authority. Any such appeal shall be preferred within such time, and shall be heard and disposed of in such manner, as may be prescribed.";

(2)     after section 47-A, the following section shall be inserted namely:--

"47-B. Stamp duty chargeable for instrument of rectification.--

Where an instrument purports to rectify any error in the description of property as set out in any previous instrument calling within the purview of section 47-A, then, the amount of duty chargeable on such instrument of rectification shall be the amount chargeable on it under Schedule I less the amount of duty, if any, already paid in respect of such previous instrument.";

(3)     in section 74, after clause (a), the following clause shall be inserted, namely:--

"(aa) the proper use of stamps and stamp papers and the prevention of misuse of such stamp and stamp papers.";

(4)     in Schedule I, under Article "5, Agreement or Memorandum of an Agreement", clause (i) and the entries relating thereto shall be relettered as clause (j) and before clause (j) as so relettered, the following clause shall be inserted, namely:--

"(i) if relating to construction of a house or building including the multi-unit house or building by the vendor on land sold by such vendor and containing stipulation that such land together with such house or building or multi-unit house or building so constructed shall be held either individually or jointly by the vendee of such land,--

Explanation.--For the purpose of this clause,--

(i)       "multi-unit house or building" shaft mean only block or building having not less than five floors, flats or apartments as he case may be;

(ii)      "cost of the proposed construction'' means the cost as mentioned in the agreement or the cost as adopted for the purpose of estimation by the Public Works Department of the Government for the area concerned, whichever is higher and for this purpose a certificate from the Assistant Engineer of the Public Works Department of the Government of the area concerned regarding the cost of the proposed construction shall be attached along with the agreement for the purpose of execution. Such certificate shall be conclusive proof of the cost of the proposed construction.".

Section 3 - Amendment of Central Act XVI of 1908

In the Registration Act, 1908 (Central Act XVI of 1908),--

(1)     in section 2,--

(i)       in clause (9), the word "and" occurring at the end shall be omitted;

(ii)      in clause (10), the word "and" shall be added at the end;

(iii)     after clause (10), the following clause shall be added, namely:--

"(11) 'tout' means a person who habitually frequents the precincts of a registration office, for the purpose of employment for himself or for any other person in connection with any registration business and who is so declared as a tout under Part XIII-A,"

(2)     in section 17, in sub-section (1), after clause (e), the following clause shall be added, namely:--

"(f) instruments of agreement relating to construction of multi-unit house or building on land held by several persons as referred to in clause (i) under Article 5 of Schedule I to the Indian Stamp Act 1899 (Central Act II of 1899).";

(3)     after Part XIII, the following Part shall be inserted, namely:--

"PART XIII-A.

OF TOUTS.

80-B. Powers to frame and publish lists of touts.--

(1)     Every Registrar of a district as regards his own office and the offices subordinate thereto and every Sub-divisional Magistrate as regards the registration offices within his own jurisdiction may frame and publish lists of persons proved to his satisfaction or to the satisfaction of any Sub-Registrar as provided in section 80-C, by evidence of general repute or otherwise, habitually to act as touts, and may from time to time; alter and amend such lists.

(2)     No person's name shall be included in any such list until he shall have had an opportunity of showing cause against such inclusion.

(3)     Where the name of any person is included in a list framed and published by a Sub-divisional Magistrate under this section, such person may, within thirty days of the publication of the list in which his name first appears, apply in writing to the Registrar of the district for the removal of his name from such list and the orders of the Registrar, passed after such inquiry (if any) as he considers necessary on such application shall be final.

80-C. Inquiry by a Sub-Registrar regarding suspected touts.--

Any Registrar of a district or Sub-divisional Magistrate may send to any Sub-Registrar within the jurisdiction of such authority the name of any person alleged or suspected to be a tout and request the Sub-Registrar to hold an inquiry in regard to such person; and the Sub-Registrar shall thereupon hold an inquiry into the conduct of that person, and, after giving him an opportunity of showing cause as provided in sub-section (2) of section 80-B, shall report to the authority who has made the request whether the person has been proved to the satisfaction of the Sub-Registrar to be a tout; and that authority may include the name of any person who has been so proved to be a tout in the list of touts framed and published by him under sub-section (1) of section 80-B:

Provided that such authority shall hear such person who, before his name has been so included, appears before him and desires so be heard.

80-D. Display of lists of touts in registration offices.--

A copy of every such list shall be conspicuously displayed in every registration office to which the same relates.

80-E. Exclusion of touts from precincts of registration offices.--

A registering officer may, by general or special order, exclude from the precincts of his registration office any person whose name is included in any such list.

80-F. Presumption as to touts found within precincts of registration offices.--

Every person who having been excluded from the precincts of a registration office under section 80-E is found within the precincts of any registration office without written permission from the registering officer shall be deemed to be acting as a tout for the purposes of section 82-A:

Provided that this section shall not apply where such person is a party to a document intended for registration at such office or has been directed to appear by any process of the registering officer.

80-G. Arrest and trial of touts.--

(1)     Any registering officer may, by an order in writing direct any person named in the order to arrest any such tout found within the precincts of the registration office. Such tout may be arrested accordingly and shall be for with produced before the registering officer.

(2)     If the tout admits his offence the provisions of section 345 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Central Act 2 of 1974), shall be applicable, so far as may be, to his detention, trial and punishment.

(3)     If the tout does not admit his offence the provisions of section 346 of the said Code shall be similarly applicable to his detention, trial and punishment.

(4)     A registering officer shall be deemed to be a Civil Court for the purposes of sections 345 and 346 of the said Code.";

(5)     after section 82, the following section shall be inserted, namely:--

"82-A. Penalty.--

Whoever acts as a tout whilst his name is included in a list of touts framed and published under this Act shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month or with fine which may extend to two hundred rupees or with both.";

(6)     in section 83, in sub-section (2), for the word "Offences", the words, figures and letter "Save as provided in section 80-G offences" shall be substituted.