Can sale deed be declared invalid if information wrong
Clayton Mendonca
(Querist) 07 March 2010
This query is : Resolved
1) An old 85 year old Roman Catholic Christian man having four sons sells self acquired property in Bangalore, Karnataka in 2000 to one of his sons with two other sons being witnesses. The fourth son is not aware of this sale.
2) In this registered Sale Deed the description of the house is written as - Plinth area of the building: 100 sq. ft., Roofed area of each such floor: Not applicable, Material of the wall and roof: Stone walls and tiled roof, Seller agreed to sell the Schedule Property to the Purchaser for the mutually agreed consideration of Rs. 1 lakh only which is the current market value of the property in the area.
3) As per the Karnataka Government CVC Valuation Committee document dated 2000, the price of the plot and house would have been valued at Rs. 5 lakhs.
4) The house actually was/is a two floor duplex house with a total floor area of about 1000 sq. ft. (ten times what is declared in the registered Sale Deed) and is built of concrete. This house was built in 1995.
My query is:
1) Can the fourth son now file a case in Court to declare this Sale as null and void based on the below facts?
i) The man was a totally illiterate person.
ii) He was 85 years old when he made the Sale Deed.
iii) The witnesses are very close relatives.
iv) The market value mentioned in the Sale Deed was 20 percent of the actual market value when the Sale was made.
v) The three brothers have colluded to disinherit the remaining brother of his share in his father's property.
If the 85 year old totally illiterate man was of sound disposing state of mind, how come he did not notice the fact that in the Sale Deed, it is mentioned that:
i) There is a farmhouse made of stone with the plinth area of the building shown as 100 sq. ft. only (when actually the structure is a two-floor concrete building with total area about 1000 sq. ft.).
ii) The current market value is shown as Rs. 1 lakh (when the actual market value on that date was about Rs. 5 lakhs)?
It is very obvious that the old man was duped by his three sons in 2000 and that this 85-year old man was not of sound disposing state of mind as can be seen from the above facts.
Please let me know the strength of the Court case if a case is filed by the fourth son to declare the Sale Deed as null and void. The old man died in 2001, one year after the sale deed.
Thanks in advance.
Clayton
adv. rajeev ( rajoo )
(Expert) 07 March 2010
It is the property of old man he can dispose his property to any body as per his will and wish that sale cannot be challenged by the 4th son.
He cannot Challenger the sale deed on the ground that his father was in unsound mind. Itz not a good ground because already property is sold and it is regd.,
Regarding valuation. Sale of the property is in the year 2000. Sub registrar might have considered the market value of that period.
If they three sons misguided the govt, by paying less stamp duty, on this ground you can make an allegation describing the real facts to the Dist., Commissioner.
B K Raghavendra Rao
(Expert) 07 March 2010
Sri Rajeev is correct. None of your contentions hold water as the sale deed has been registered and it is over ten years since the sale transaction. It should have been challenged within three years from the date of sale.
It is not the question of inheritance as the property has been sold by sale deed.
Even for the sake of challenging the alienation, one has to pay court fee based on the present day market value of the property.
Uma parameswaran
(Expert) 07 March 2010
The facts mentioned in your letter could not be raised as a ground to make the sale deed as void.Another thing the property is self earned.So the Old man could sale with out the permission fron his son.
Y V Vishweshwar Rao
(Expert) 07 March 2010
I agree with lerd friends regardign the nature of the Self acquired property , If the Sale deed is not suspicious the Sale Deed is valid .
The Fact is that the Sale deed , execution and Registration of the Sale Deed by 85 years old father/man was not disclosed to 4th son , it is the allegation of the 4th son that he was not in sound disposing state of mind , and the same came to the knowledge of the 4th son recently- after the death of the father , the limitaion for challenging the sale deed is from the date of knowledge , these facts may be cosnidered .
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 07 March 2010
No. There is no possibility to set aside sale-deed on the round mentioned by you. Buyer is required to be more vigil before the agreeing to purchase any property.
Clayton Mendonca
(Querist) 07 March 2010
Dear Adv Rajeev S Vadrali, B K Raghavendra Rao, Uma parameswaran, Y Vishweshwar Rao and Raj Kumar Makkad,
Thanks for your suggestions. But, some of you have missed the main points.
1) It was very clearly mentioned above that in the Sale Deed wrong information is given both to fool the District Commissioner while registering the Sale Deed and to FOOL THE 85 YEAR OLD TOTALLY ILLITERATE MAN.
2) How can you put in the Sale Deed that
i) There is a farmhouse made of stone with the plinth area of the building shown as 100 sq. ft. only (WHEN ACTUALLY THE STRUCTURE IS A TWO FLOOR CONCRETE BUILDING WITH A TOTAL AREA OF 1000 sq. ft.). In 100 sq. ft, even a toilet will not be possible to be built.
ii) The current market value is shown as Rs. 1 lakh (WHEN THE TOTAL ACTUAL MARKET VALUE ON THE DATE OF THE SALE DEED AS PER the CVC Valuation in 2000 WAS Rs. 5 LAKHS). The District Commissioner OR Registrar would have gone by what was mentioned in the Sale Deed. In normal circumstances, he will not do a physical examination of the plot and house.
I strongly feel that a Criminal Case should be filed against the son by the District Commissioner for giving GROSSLY false information in the Sale Deed. It is very clear that the son had cheated both his father and the DC. Secondly, the two witnesses should also be hauled to the Court for colluding with the first son. Also, justice should be done to the fourth son to see that he gets a rightful share of his father's inheritance.
Please give your suggestions.
Thanks in advance and regards,
Clayton M. B. Tech (Elect. Engg.), B.Tech. IIT, Bombay.
Kumar Thadhani
(Expert) 08 March 2010
There is a Caveat emptor Let the Buyer's Beware it is too late to set- aside the sale-deed.
Y V Vishweshwar Rao
(Expert) 11 March 2010
1- It is true that the 85 years old Father and SRO were cheated by wrong inforamtion/declaration with an intention to gain some thing .
2-(1) The Statement /Declaration in the Sale Deed is agianst the Ground Reality - the same is illegal
(ii) The market Value to be declared as per basis Value Register of the SRO - not withstanding the current market value for the pupose of the Stamp Duty -It can be verified by the SRO beofre / or /after Reistration as per the concnerned State Rules under Stamp act & Registration Act .
The Proceedings against the Sale Deed ;-
1- A Civil Suit for dclaration of Sale Deed as null and voidn - Limitation for the suit starts form the day when the agrieved party came to know about the wrongs / illegal tyhings .
2- Steps /proiceedigns by the SRO to be taken with in the limited period as prescribed under the concenred State Rules under the Stamps and Registration Act/s
3- Criminal case to be verified as suggested under (1 )above from the date of knowledge of the agrieved party .
Y V Vishweshwar Rao
(Expert) 11 March 2010
Article 58 of the Schedule under Indian Limitation Act
-"To obtain any other dclaration - Three years - from the date when the rigth to sue First Accrues" -
In this case the right to sue accrued on the date of knowledge to the aggrieved party . Three years time from the date of knowledge of the Wrongs / illega acts of others sons agaisn the father.
B K Raghavendra Rao
(Expert) 11 March 2010
The dispute area in the sale deed, as per you, are:
1. Type of construction and area of construction of the building is wrongly mentioned.
2. Sale is undervalued.
Both are civil in nature and no criminal action is involved. If information furnished is wrong it is between the purchaser and the seller to dispute the contents of the sale deed. Sub-Registrar does not come into picture as we cannot expect the sub-registrar to approach the civic authorities and verify the area and type of construction of buildings of each and every sale deed that are presented for registration.
If sale is undervalued it is up to the government to recover with penalty the difference between the paid amount and payable amount.
How can a third party like fourth brother raise objections over the sale deed executed between two parties not affecting his interests.
You have raised the issue of old man being illiterate. Here in land transactions whether the seller or the buyer is literate or illiterate does not matter. In many cases illiterate persons are far more intelligent than literate persons.
You have raised the issue close relative being witnesses. There is no law to say that close relatives shall not be witnesses. In fact, it is more valid because the person signing the deed would be well known to the seller or buyer.
All your contentions does not merit to prove that a sale deed is invalid or void ab initio. Everything in the case stated by you is lawful and sale deed cannot be challenged.
Raj Kumar Makkad
(Expert) 12 March 2010
I concur with the last opinion of Rao in he light of more clarification of the facts of the matter in dispute.
