GOVINDASAMY MUDALIAR Vs. RASU MUDALIAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The question raised in this case relates to the construction of Section 17(2)(vi) of the Indian Registration Act. Under the clause as it originally stood, "decree and orders of Courts and awards" were excepted from registration; but by an amendment by Section 10, of the Transfer of Property (Amendment) Supplementary Act. 1929, the following clause was substituted; any decree or order of a Court except a decree or order expressed to be made on a compromise and comprising immovable property other than that which is the subject-matter of the suit or proceeding.

(2.) In Hementa Kumari Debi V/s. Mindapur Zemindari Co. 53 Ind. Cas. 534 : 46 I.A. 240 : 47 C. 485 : 11 L.W. 301 : 37 M.L.J. 525 : 17 A.L.J. 1117 : 24 C.W.N. 177 : (1920) M.W.N. 66 : 27 M.L.T. 42 : 31 C.L.J. 298 : 22 Bom. L.R. 488 (P.C.) the Judicial Committee held, having regard to the wording of Order XXIII, Rule 3, of the Civil P. C., that where a suit is adjusted by a lawful agreement between the parties, the proper course is to recite the agreement in the decree or to annex it as a schedule to the decree, but in either case the operative part of the decree should be confined to the actual subject-matter of the suit; then turning to the Indian Registration Act of 1908 and considering the meaning of the word decree Section 17(2)(vi) they further held that there was no reason why a limit should be imposed upon the meaning of the word so as to confine it to the operative portion only of the decree, adding it may be that as a decree it was incapable of being executed outside the lands of the suit, but that does not prevent it being received in evidence of its contents.

(3.) The result of this decision is, that the entire decree was excepted from registration, that is to say, that part of it which related to the suit as well as that which was extraneous to it; in other words, for the purpose of the Registration Act, in the case of a consent decree, the expression decree meant the whole of it, both the operative part and the part relating to matters outside the suit. It was while the law was in this state, that the amendment was made.