CAG audit reveals irregularities of Rs 8.29 cr in Registration dept

In the audit conducted in the sub-registrar offices, the CAG found during the scrutiny that conveyance of properties valued at Rs 4.97 crore and affected through 28 conveyance deeds registered between the years 2014 and 2016 were cancelled by deeds of cancellation citing non-receipt of consideration and failure to hand over possession of the properties.

“Scrutiny of original deeds of conveyance, however, indicated receipt of consideration by the sellers and handing over of properties to the purchasers. Since the original sellers had re-acquired right and interest over the properties from the original purchasers and the properties vested again in the vendors through cancellation deeds, these deeds were to be treated as re-conveyance deeds, involving levy of stamp duty and registration fee of Rs 39.72 lakh. The ROs, however, treated the instruments as deeds of cancellation and collected Rs 6,000. Thus, the misclassification of instruments resulted in short levy of stamp duty and registration fee of Rs 39.66 lakh,” it said.

After the audit pointed out the misclassification, the Registration Department replied that the instruments did not indicate re-conveyance of properties by the purchasers to the vendors and the IGR had clarified in December 2011 that unless it was specifically recited in the instrument that the property was re-conveyed, it could not be treated as re-conveyance.

During the course of the year 2017-18, the Registration Department accepted and recovered underassessments and other deficiencies amounting to Rs 3.22 crore in 157 cases pointed out in earlier years.