Madras High Court
M/S. Enes Textile Mills Limited vs The Sub-Registrar on 22 June, 2021
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS
DATED : 22.06.2021
CORAM
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE V.BHARATHIDASAN
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
and
W.M.P. Nos. 13501, 13502, 13505, 13506,
13507 & 13508 of 2021
M/s. ENES Textile Mills Limited,
rep. By its Managing Partner
Mrs.N.Sumathi ... Petitioner in all W.P.s
Versus
1. The Sub-Registrar,
Sulur, Old No.113, 114,
New No.423, Tiruchy Road,
Sulur, Coimbatore-641 402.
2. State Bank of India,
Stressed Assets Management Branch,
st
Raja Plaza, 1 Floor, No.1112,
Avinashi Road,
Coimbatore-641 037. ... Respondents in all W.P.s
PRAYER in W.P. No.12707 of 2021 : Writ Petition is filed under Article
226 of the Constitution of India, praying for the issuance of a Writ of
Certiorarified Mandamus, calling for the records relating to the order dated
1/10
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
st
22.03.2021 made in RFL/SULUR/6/2021 on the file of the 1 respondent,
st
quash the same and consequently direct the 1 respondent to register the sale
nd
certificate dated 12.01.2021 issued by the 2 respondent to the petitioner in
respect of the property being 2 acres of industrial land in Survey
No.789/3A1B in Karumanthampatti Village, Sulur Taluk, Sulur District,
Coimbatore.
PRAYER in W.P. No.12711 of 2021 : Writ Petition is filed under Article
226 of the Constitution of India, praying for the issuance of a Writ of
Certiorarified Mandamus, calling for the records relating to the order dated
st
22.03.2021 made in RFL/SULUR/5/2021 on the file of the 1 respondent,
st
quash the same and consequently direct the 1 respondent to register the sale
nd
certificate dated 12.01.2021 issued by the 2 respondent to the petitioner in
respect of the property being 2 acres of industrial land in Survey
No.789/3A2 in Karumanthampatti Village, Sulur Taluk, Sulur District,
Coimbatore.
PRAYER in W.P. No.12713 of 2021 : Writ Petition is filed under Article
2/10
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
226 of the Constitution of India, praying for the issuance of a Writ of
Certiorarified Mandamus, calling for the records relating to the order dated
st
22.03.2021 made in RFL/SULUR/7/2021 on the file of the 1 respondent,
st
quash the same and consequently direct the 1 respondent to register the sale
nd
certificate dated 12.01.2021 issued by the 2 respondent to the petitioner in
respect of the property being 1.50 acres of industrial land in Survey
No.789/3B in Karumanthampatti Village, Sulur Taluk, Sulur District,
Coimbatore.
For Petitioners in all W.P.s : Mr.T.Saikrishnan
For Respondents in all W.P.s : Mr.Yogesh Kannadasan,
Govt. Advocate
ORDER
(The case has been heard through video conference)
These Writ Petitions have been filed challenging the order passed by
st
the 1 respondent Sub-Registrar refusing to register the sale certificate on
the ground that the properties have been attached by a civil court and the
encumbrance has been made in the property.
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
2. The grievance of the petitioner is that, the petitioner is the auction
sale purchaser of the property under the SARFAESI Act and a sale
nd
certificate was also issued by the 2 respondent. Subsequently, the petitioner
wants to register the sale certificate. In the meantime, some third party said
to have filed a suit against original owner of property and obtained an order
st
of attachment before judgment. Based on that, the 1 respondent Sub-
Registrar is refusing to register the document. Challenging the same, the
present Writ Petition has been filed by the petitioner.
3. Mr. T.Saikrishnan, learned counsel appearing for petitioner would
submit that the issue involved in these Writ Petitions is no more res integra.
This Court has already held that the order of attaching the property before
judgment is not a bar for registering the document in a civil court in
W.P.Nos.9607 and 10811 of 2021 dated 29.04.2011 respectively. The
relevant portion of the order reads as follows :-
“8. The issue involved in these Writ Petitions as to whether
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
a Sub-Registrar can refuse to register a sale certificate issued by
a secured creditor on the ground that there was an order of
attachment in force against the secured assets is no more res
integra.
9. A Division Bench of this Court in its judgment in Central
Bank of India, rep. By its Authorised Officer and Chief
Manager, Regional Office, Madurai in W.P.No.10724 of 2018
dated 06.12.2018 following a judgment of the Full Bench of this
Court in Assistant Commercial Tax Officer (CT) v. Indian
Overseas Bank reported in 2016 (6) CTC 769 has held that the
right of a secured creditor to realise the debts due and payable by
the sale of assets over which security interest is created, would
have priority over all debts and Government dues including
revenues, taxes, cesses and rates due to the Central Government,
State Government or Local Authority. In such circumstances, the
order attaching the property before judgment would not be a bar
for a Registrar to register the sale certificate. The relevant
portion of the judgment reads as under :-
“9. In the light of the judgment of Full Bench of this
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
Court reported in 2016 (6) CTC 769 (cited supra) and on a
conjoint reading of Section 26-E of the SARFAESI Act and
Section 31-B of the Recovery of Debts Due to Banks and
Financial Institutions Act, 1993, there cannot be any doubt
that the rights of a secured creditor to realise the debts due
and payable by sale of assets over which security interest
is created, would have priority over all debts and
Government dues including revenues, taxes, cesses and
rates due to the Central Government, State Government or
Local Authority, inasmuch as Section 31-B of the Recovery
of Debts Due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act,
1993, was introduced with a “notwithstanding” clause and
it has also come into force from 01.09.2016.”
10. In such view of the matter, we are of the opinion that
the order of attachment before judgment cannot be bar for the first
respondent to register the sale certificate in respect of the property
in question and hence, there cannot be any impediment for the first
respondent to register the sale certificate dated 19.02.2020 issued
in favour of the petitioners.
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
11. Another Division Bench of this Court in Indian
Overseas Bank v. Sub-Registrar, Tuticorin, Keelur and others
(2018 SC OnLine Mad 5016) has also taken the similar view. The
judgments of the Division Benches of this Court cited above have
been followed by the learned single Judges of this Court in
M.Dinesh Kumar and another v. The State of Tamil Nadu and
others in W.P.No.26568 of 2019 dated 20.09.2019 and in
C.Govindasamy and another v. The Joint Sub-Registrar-II,
Gobichettipalayam and others in W.P.No.18710 of 2020, dated
15.12.2020 wherein it has been held that the Sub-Registrar cannot
refuse to register a document on the ground that the property was
subjected to an order of attachment and the holder of the sale
certificate, who has purchased the property pendente lite shall
take the risk of encumbrances created over the property prior to
his purchase.”
4. In the light of the above settled legal position, this Court is of the
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
considered view that orders impugned in these Writ Petitions refusing to
st
register the sale certificate by the 1 respondent on the ground that there has
been an order attaching the property before judgment is not sustainable in
the eye of law and therefore, it is liable to be quashed.
5. In the result, these Writ Petitions are allowed and the orders
st
impugned in these Writ Petitions are quashed and the 1 respondent is
directed to register the sale certificate in question, if it is otherwise in order,
within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
These Writ Petitions are allowed accordingly with the above directions. No
costs. Consequently, the connected Writ Miscellaneous Petitions are closed.
22.06.2021
rpp
To
1. The Sub-Registrar,
Sulur, Old No.113, 114,
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
New No.423, Tiruchy Road,
Sulur, Coimbatore-641 402.
2. State Bank of India,
Stressed Assets Management Branch,
st
Raja Plaza, 1 Floor, No.1112,
Avinashi Road, Coimbatore-641 037.
V.BHARATHIDASAN, J.
rpp
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711 & 12713 of 2021
W.P.Nos. 12707, 12711
& 12713 of 2021
22.06.2021
