IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) TUESDAY, THE TWENTY NINETH DAY OF JULY TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE N.V. RAMANA W.P.No.15626, 15627, 15633, 15655, 15661, 15662, 15672, 15677, 15678, 15682, 15699, 15700, 15708, 15727 and 15739 of 2008 WRIT PETITION NO : 15626 of 2008 Between: Chokkapu Krishna S/o. Satyam R/o. D.o. 18-155, Kothavalasa (V) Parvathipuram Mandal, Vizianagaram District. ..... PETITIONER AND 1 The District Registrar (Stamps and Registration) Vizianagaram District, at Vizianagaram. 2 The Sub- Registrar (Stamps and Registration) Parvatipuram, Vizianagaram District. 3 The Assistant Commissioner (Endowments Department) Vizianagaram, Vizianagaram District. .....RESPONDENTS Petition under Article 226 of the constitution of India praying that in the circumstances stated in the Aﬃdavit ﬁled herein the High Court will be pleased to issue an appropriate writ order or direction more particularly a writ in the nature of writ of Mandamus declaring the proceedings dt. 21-9-2007 issued by the 2nd Respondent and conﬁrmed by the 1st Respondent by proceedings dt. 23-2-208 as illegal, and void and consequently direct the 2nd respondent to register and deliver the document to the petitioner and pass such other order or orders. Counsel for the Petitioner: MR.A.RAVI SHANKAR Counsel for the Respondent Nos.1 & 2: GP FOR REVENUE Counsel for Respondent No.3 : GP FOR ENDOWMENTS The Court made the following : COMMON ORDER: Since a common question arises for consideration in all these writ petitions, they are heard together and are being disposed of by this common order. These writ petitions are ﬁled stating that one Korada Ramalinga Setty was the owner of an extent of Ac.12.18 cents of dry land in Sy.No.180 of Kothavalasa Village, Parvatipuram Mandal, Vizianagaram District having purchased the same in an auction conducted by the court in the year 1958. Out of the said land, an extent of Ac.1.17 cents was acquired by the government for the purpose of Janjavathi channel in the year 1979 and after a litigation, the compensation was paid to him and in the year 1981-82, an extent of Ac.3.69 cents of land was acquired by the social welfare department and compensation was also paid for the said land to the said Korada Ramalingasetty. In the same year, one Salipalli Papa Rao has purchased Ac.2.52 cents of land and one Navroji Rao and Banoji Rao purchased an extent of Ac.3.71 cents and converted the same into 25 plots and documents in respect thereof, have been registered and were also released. Thereafter, the said Navroji and Banoji Rao have purchased another extent of Ac.3.00 from the grandson of the original owner and the said lands were also converted into plots. Initially 11 plots were sold in April, 2007 and the documents in respect thereof have been registered and released. Subsequently, 31 documents were submitted for registration and the same were withheld by the registering authority on the ground that a telegram was sent by the 3rd respondent requesting him to stop the illegal sale transactions in S.No.180/1 and 2 in an extent of Ac.12.18 cents on the ground that the same belongs to Endowment Department. It is stated that against the said orders passed by the 2nd respondent – Sub-Registrar, Vizianagaram, the petitioners preferred an appeal before the 1st respondent – District Registrar (Stamps & Registration), Vizianagaram who by order dated 23.2.2008 conﬁrmed the orders of the 2nd respondent. Aggrieved by the same the present writ petitions are ﬁled seeking a direction to the 2nd respondent to register and deliver the documents to the petitioners. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners as well as the learned Government Pleader for Revenue and the learned Government Pleader for Endowments. It seems that the Sub-Registrar has refused to register the documents on the ground that the Assistant Commissioner, Endowments vide letter Rc.No.A2/11752007 dated 14.9.2007 informed him that the subject matter of lands are endowment lands as per the records of the oﬃce and that steps have already been taken to notify the same under section 22-A of the Indian Registration Act, 1908 (for short ‘the Act’). Aggrieved by the same, the petitioners carried the matter in appeal before the 1st respondent – District Registrar under Section 72 of the Act. The said appeals were dismissed upholding the orders of rejection passed by the Sub-Registrar and directed the petitioners to approach the competent civil court under Section 77 of the Act. The only contention raised by the learned counsel for the petitioners is that earlier when there was a dispute as to whom the compensation has to be paid for the land acquired by the government, the vendor of the petitioners approached the Civil Court and obtained a decree to the eﬀect that the subject matter of lands are not endowment lands and that the same belong to him and, therefore, there is no need for the petitioners now to approach the civil court. Sections 72 and 77 of the Registration Act, 1908 read as under. 72.Appeal to Registrar from orders of Sub-Registrar refusing registration on ground other than denial of execution: 1) Except where the refusal is made on the ground of denial of execution, an appeal shall lie against an order of Sub- Registrar refusing to admit a document to registration (whether the registration of such document is compulsory or optional) to the Registrar to whom such Sub-Registrar is subordinate, if presented to such Registrar within thirty days from the date of the order, and the Registrar may reverse or alter such order. 2) If the order of the Registrar directs the document to be registered and the document is duly presented for registration within thirty days after the making of such order, the Sub- Registrar shall obey the same, and thereon shall, so far as may be practicable, follow the procedure prescribed in Sections 58, 59 and 60, and such registration shall take effect as if the document had been registered when it was ﬁrst duly presented for registration. 77.Suit in case of order of refusal by Registrar:-1. Where the Registrar refuses to order the document to be registered under Section 72 or Section 76, any person claiming under such document , or his representative assign or agent, may within thirty days after the making of the order of refusal institute in the civil court, within the local limits of whose original jurisdiction is situate the oﬃce in which the document is sought to be registered, a suit for a decree directing the document to be registered in such oﬃce if it be duly presented for registration within thirty days after the passing of such orders. 2) The provisions contained in sub-sections (2) and (3) of Section 75 shall, mutates mutandis, apply to all documents presented for registration in accordance with any such decree, and notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the documents shall be receivable in evidence in such suit.” A reading of the above provisions make it clear that if any order is passed by the District Registrar under Section 77 of the Act, the only remedy available is to approach the Civil Court under Section 77 of the Act. In the instant case also, against the orders passed by the Sub-Registrar refusing to register the documents, the petitioners preferred appeals under Section 77 of the Act and those appeals were dismissed. It is only the petitioners who invited the orders from the 1st respondent on merits. If the petitioners possess any decree from the civil Court, they ought to have brought it to the notice of the authorities at the thresh hold itself. Instead of doing so, they allowed the Sub-Registrar to refuse the registration and also invited an order from the appellate authority directing them to approach the civil Court. Therefore, the petitioners have to approach the competent civil Court under Section 77 of the Act and adjudicate the matter and this Court, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India cannot grant the relief sought for by the petitioners. For the foregoing reasons, the writ petitions fail and they are accordingly dismissed. N.V.RAMANA,J Dt.29.7.2008 msv ..... REGISTRAR // TRUE COPY // SECTION OFFICER To 1 The District Registrar (Stamps and Registration) Vizianagaram District, at Vizianagaram. 2 The Sub- Registrar (Stamps and Registration) Parvatipuram, Vizianagaram District. 3 The Assistant Commissioner (Endowments Department) Vizianagaram, Vizianagaram District. 4 2CCs to Govt.Pleader for Revenue, High Court of A.P. Hyd. 5 2CCs to Govt.Pleader for Endowments, High Court of A.P. Hyd. 6 2CD copies