Registration Act, 1908–Secs. 17 & 49–Registration of a document and its admissibility in evidence–Relevant principles-
(a) Mandatory registration of a document under Section 17 of the Registration Act is a conclusive mandate of law and has to be followed in all adjudication proceedings, so as to exclude all documents, which though require registration, but are not registered.
(b) The only exception to Section 49 of the Registration Act is that an unregistered document affecting an immovable property can be received in evidence, only in a suit for specific performance under Chapter II of the Specific Relief Act, 1877, or if required for evidence of any collateral transaction, not required to be affected by the registered instrument.
(c) The collateral transactions will only be those transactions that are independent of, and divisible from the transaction to effect which the law required registration.
(d) The impounding or paying of stamp duty would be of no consequence as per the mandate of Section 23 of the Registration Act read with Section 91 of the Evidence Act, and thus, by no means, such documents can be made admissible in evidence, at this stage.
