HUCHAMMA Vs. CHANDRASHEKAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) 1st Defendant in the suit has preferred this petition challenging the order of the Trial Court overruling his objections to the marking of document and directing the plaintiff to pay deficit stamp duty of Rs.10,43,800/- with penalty of Rs.5/-.

(2.) In a suit for specific performance, after framing of issues, the plaintiff entered the witness box and sought to rely on the suit document i.e., agreement of sale dated 07.01.2006. The defendant objected to the marking of this document on the ground it is insufficiently stamped and he also filed an application U/s 34-A r/w Article 5(e)(i) of the Karnataka Stamp Act, 1957 (here in after referred to as 'the Act') for a direction to the plaintiff to pay stamp duty and penalty on the agreement of sale dated 07.01.2006.

(3.) After hearing the parties, the trial court proceeded to pass an order on 08.06.2012 setting out the relevant recitals in the agreement of sale regarding delivery of possession of the schedule property thereunder and therefore concluded that the agreement of sale ought to have been stamped like a conveyance under Article 5(i)(e) of the Act. Having found that the agreement is written on a Rs.200/- stamp paper even when the total sale consideration mentioned therein is Rs.1,74,00,000/-, the trial court concluded that the duty payable would be Rs.10,44,000/- and directed the plaintiff to pay deficit duty of Rs.10,43,800/- and a penalty of Rs.5/-, relying on a judgment of this Court in K.GOVINDE GOWDA Vs AKKAYYAMMA, 2011 ILR(Kar) 4719. Aggrieved by the said order, 1st defendant is before this Court.