Gujarat High Court
M/S Mars Developers Junagadh Through ... vs State Of Gujarat on 11 September, 2025
Author: Sunita Agarwal
Bench: Sunita Agarwal
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/CA/4146/2025 ORDER DATED: 11/09/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CIVIL APPLICATION (FOR CONDONATION OF DELAY) NO.
4146 of 2025
In R/LETTERS PATENT APPEAL NO. 1071 of 2025
With
R/LETTERS PATENT APPEAL NO. 1071 of 2025
In R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 13827 of 2017
With
CIVIL APPLICATION (FOR STAY) NO. 1 of 2025 In R/LETTERS
PATENT APPEAL NO. 1071 of 2025
In R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 13827 of 2017
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M/S MARS DEVELOPERS JUNAGADH THROUGH PARTNER
VIPULBHAI VALLABHABHAI RAJPARA
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & ORS.
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Appearance:
MALHAR J PARMAR(10124) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR MAHER P VAKHARIA(10744) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR PUNIT B JUNEJA(3972) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MS HETAL PATEL, AGP for the Respondent(s) No. 1,2,3
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CORAM:HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MRS. JUSTICE
SUNITA AGARWAL
and
HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE D.N.RAY
Date : 11/09/2025
ORAL ORDER
(PER : HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MRS. JUSTICE
SUNITA AGARWAL)
ORDER IN DELAY CONDONATION APPLICATION:
1. The delay of 793 days in filing the present intra-court
appeal is explained to the satisfaction of the Court. The delay
condonation application is allowed. The delay in filing the
appeal is hereby condoned. Office shall allot regular number
to the memo of appeal.
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/CA/4146/2025 ORDER DATED: 11/09/2025
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ORDER IN LETTERS PATENT APPEAL :
2. This intra-court appeal is directed against the judgment
and order dated 28.04.2023 passed by the learned Single
Judge in dismissing the writ petition refusing to interfere in
the orders passed by the Stamp Authority in levying stamp
duty on the sale deed dated 08.08.2011 registered at Serial
No.8051 with the office of the Sub Registrar, Junagadh. The
contention of learned counsel for the appellant-original
petitioner is that a registered Agreement to Sell dated
13.01.2011 was executed with respect to the property in
question and while registering the same at Serial No.440,
adequate stamp duty was affixed according to the prevailing
Jantri rate and was duly paid. The registered Agreement to
Sell dated 13.01.2011 was with the transfer of possession. The
result is that the stamp duty was paid on the entire sale
consideration as per the prevailing Jantri value.
3. On the presentation of the sale deed on 08.08.2011 in
the office of the Sub Registrar, the same was also duly
registered after proper affixation of the stamp duty. The
contention is that as the entire stamp duty was already paid
on the Agreement to Sell at the time of its registration, there
was no requirement of payment of further stamp duty at the
time of registration of the sale deed.
4. It is submitted that the said sale deed was not impounded
rather registered. The order impugned has been passed by
initiation of a proceeding on the objection raised by the Audit
Officer that the stamp duty as per the Jantri rate prevailing on
the date of execution of the sale deed dated 08.08.2011 had
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/CA/4146/2025 ORDER DATED: 11/09/2025
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not been paid. The stand of the Stamp Authority in the
impugned order is that the deficit stamp duty, i.e. difference
between the stamp duty paid at the time of registration of the
Agreement to Sell i.e. 13.01.2011 and the stamp duty payable
as on the date of execution of the sale deed dated 08.08.2011
was required to be paid, for the revised Jantri value as
prevailing on the date of execution of the sale deed.
5. The submission of learned counsel for the appellant is
based on Article 20 of Schedule-I of the Gujarat Stamp Act,
1958.
6. Pertinent is to note that the State respondents have not
filed any response before the Writ Court and the reliance is
placed by Ms.Hetal Patel, learned AGP appearing for the State
respondents to a recent decision of the Apex Court in
Ramesh Mishrimal Jain vs. Avinash Vishwanath Patne
and another, being Civil Appeal No.2549 of 2025, dated
14.02.2025 to submit that for the purposes of stamp duty, the
instrument, of which the registration is sought for, would be
relevant. On such submission made by learned AGP, we post
the matter after two weeks to enable the State respondents to
file their reply to the writ petition and the learned counsel for
the appellant to deal with the argument of the State
respondents.
7. Put up this matter on 09.10.2025.
(SUNITA AGARWAL, CJ )
(D.N.RAY, J)
GAURAV J THAKER
