On Thursday, the Govt. of Delhi submitted before the High Court of Delhi that it does not want online registration of properties to be made available in order to curb false registrations and obviate unnecessary litigation in the society related to the same.
The submission was made in an affidavit filed on a Public Interest Litigation seeking the formulation of policy & bring in line the e-registration of documents, in a bid to avoid the unnecessary crowding at the Sub-Registrar's Office & ease the registration process in view of the Coronavirus pandemic.
The affidavit said that "The Govt does not want the registration of properties to be made available online in order to curb false registrations and to obviate unnecessary litigation in the society related to registration of property".
It also said that the rationale of e-registration for documents due to COVID-19 pandemic is not substantial, as Sub-Registrar's Offices are functioning & no work in the office of Registrar is hindered or stopped in the present circumstances.
A division bench of Justice DN Patel & Justice Prateek Jalan, after taking note of the submissions made by the Delhi government, disposed of the matter & observed that the petition may be treated as representation.
The Delhi Govt, in its affidavit, also said that COVID-19 related restrictions are temporary arrangements with the objective of curbing its spread.
"Normal functioning of all government departments including public dealings are operational subject to certain requisite pre-cautions as mandated for COVID-19 disease in order to curb its spread," the affidavit said.
It said that home visit option is also available for old age, medical unfit & disabled person & the same can be accessed through DORIS, an additional facility extended to the vulnerable group of society & in order to curb any false registration of property & to avoid unwanted litigation, certain checks & balances are essential.
The affidavit said, "This includes the presentation of parties, photographs of the parties & witnesses, examining them by sub-registrar at the time of execution to ascertain the conduct of the parties & verify the details".
It added that "It is also pertinent to mention that buying & selling of properties are generally once in a lifetime opportunity for many people. So, it is necessary to have certain checks in the public interest".
The plea, filed by one DC Tuteja through advocate Gaurav Bahl, said that the registration of the documents is one of the very basic issues touching upon the lives of the society & due to the present restrictions arising from the pandemic COVID-19.
The plea had said that "The entire process of registration of documents has come to a standstill & various rights of the parties have been affected equally being unable to meet their obligations under the agreements or for creating any rights in the favour of their loved ones".
It said that the gathering of a large number of people at these offices is highly risk-oriented & is likely to cause the spread of the virus.
The plea had also submitted that the secret documents, such as will, etc can still continue to be registered with personal presence, but added that a mechanism may also be made for ensuring that the registration of the will may also be done virtually.
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