RAJENDRA NARAYAN SINGH DEO Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a reference made under Section 57 of the Indian Stamp Act (hereinafter mentioned as 'the Act') by the Member, Board of Revenue. Orissa, as the Chief revenue Administrative authority in the State The reference arises under the following circumstances :

(2.) THE petitioner Maharaja Shri R. N. Singh Deo is the Ruler of the ex-State of bolangir which was merged in the State of Orissa by the well known Merger agreement of 1947 and the administration of the said State was taken over by the government of Orissa on 1-1-1948 In the year 1958 an Act was passed known as "the Orissa Private Lands of Rulers (Assessment of Rent) Act XIII of 1958 (hereinafter mentioned as "the Orissa Act') The object of this Act is to make provision for the assessment of rent in respect of the private lands of the Rulers in the State of Orissa. Under the provisions of the said Act, a proceeding (Miscellaneous Case No. 27/59) was started by the Additional Collector, Bolangir, as a Revenue Officer of the District for assessment of the private lands of the petitioners. In accordance with the provisions of the said Orissa Act, a draft or preliminary patta was prepared and the petitioner was asked why it should not be made final. While contesting the patta an objection was filed on behalf of the petitioner saying that a particular property was not liable to assessment as it has been transferred to one of his minor sons. In support of such a claim a document purporting to be a sale-deed was filed on 15-12-59. It was scribed on plain unstamped paper and the consideration was shown to be one lakh of rupees. It was shown to have been executed on 20-3-1959. The additional Collector thought that the document was not duly stamped and on 20-5-1961, started a separate miscellaneous proceeding (Miscellaneous case 28/1-1961-62) for impounding the document under Section 33 of the Indian Stamp Act and in the proceeding called upon the vendee to show cause why the document shall not be impounded for non-payment of stamp duly. In the meantime he proceeded with the original assessment proceeding and passed the final orders on 21-9-1961 in the said proceeding On 15 1-1962, the additional Collector passed an order in the aforesaid Miscellaneous Case (28/1-62)that he impounded the document and forwarded the same to the Collector in accordance with the provisions of Section 38 (2) of the Act. After receipt of the document, the Collector of Bolangir in exercise of the powers under section 40 of the Act directed to petitioner by order dated 17-3-63 to pay a sum of Rs. 2-250 as the proper duty payable on the document and a penalty of Rs. 9,000. As against this order of the Collector, a revision petition (Revenue Case No. 75/62) was filed by the petitioner before the member. Board of Revenue

(3.) SEVERAL contentions were raised on behalf of the petitioner before the Member, board of Revenue, such as that the document being merely a draft sale-deed is not liable to stamp duty and that the original assessment proceeding in which the said document was produced having been completed on 21-9-61 Court has no jurisdiction to impound the document on 15-1-1962 in the other miscellaneous proceeding as by then he became functus officio in relation to the main proceedings.