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Judgment
Gopinath P., J
The petitioners have approached this Court with a grievance that Ext.P6 partition deed is not being accepted for registration by the 1st respondent on the premise that the said deed is not a deed of partition, but, is a sale deed in respect of which stamp duty has to be paid as applicable to sale deeds and not as applicable to partition deeds.
The learned counsel for the petitioners would submit that Ext.P6 deed can only be a partition deed as all the properties that are sought to be distributed amongst the various parties are the properties in which all of them have title and interest. It is also submitted that all the properties in question originally belonged to the parents of the 1st petitioner and the grandparents of respondents 2 and 3 who are the children of the deceased brother of the 1st petitioner. It is also pointed out that one of the properties sought to be partitioned belonged jointly to the petitioner and the deceased father of petitioners 2 and 3.
The learned Senior Government Pleader would submit that while the properties belonging in common to the parties to the partition deed alone can be the properties that are subject matter of the deed of partition and in all other cases, if an item of property is being transferred to another, the transaction will have to be considered as one of sale and not of partition. However, she submits that the 1st respondent can be directed to consider the matter with reference to the claims raised by the petitioners in order to see whether Ext.P6 can be registered as a partition deed or not.
Having heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Senior Government Pleader appearing for the respondents, this writ petition will stand disposed of directing the 1st respondent to examine as to whether the properties in question are properties in which all the parties to the partition deed (who also have to be members of a 'family' as defined) have interest and title and if so, to permit the registration of the document as a partition deed. If it is found necessary, the documents can also be forwarded for the adjudication of the District Registrar as contemplated by the provisions of Section 45 of the Stamp Act. Let the needful be done within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this judgment. If the 1st respondent finds that the deed can be registered as a partition deed even without referring it for adjudication of the District Registrar, the 1st respondent shall ensure that the registration is completed on or before 31.3.2023.