In sale deed signature of both parties is necessary
sale deed with signature of seller is not valid
don’t purchase the property
Purchasers signature not done in saledeed
Hello sir, I am purchasing a property in Bangalore. In the year 2000, A registered saledeed is made between A who is the seller and B&C who are buyers. In the saledeed I could see only the signature of the seller A in all the pages and buyers signature(B &C) are not there anywhere. Also the thumb impression of the seller A and one buyer B is seen in one of the back page of the deed but other buyer C thumb impression is not done. Now I am purchasing the property from B and C , but I am not sure if the registrated sale deed in the year2000 between A and B&C is valid as the signature of B&C are missing and also the thumb impression of C is missing. I checked with one of the subregister and he said those days(year 2000) only the signature of the seller is mandatory and it is not required to have the signature or the thumb impression of the buyer. But I am skeptical and need to go ahead with the deal only if the previous registered sale deed is legally valid. Please help me with your legal experts opinion.
Asked 4 years ago in Property Law
Religion: Hindu
14 Answers
The sale deed was earlier a deed poll, meaning a one-way document signed only by the vendor of the property in favour of the purchaser and the purchaser's signature in it being unnecessary. However, in order to avoid frauds and misrepresentations, sale deeds were required to be signed by both the vendor and the purchaser. The Registration Department in each State started implementing the new procedure - of requiring the signatures of both parties in sale deeds - from different years. In this context, what the registrar says may be true. You may check the circular issued by the Inspector-General of Registration in Karnataka to ascertain the effective date of implementation of the revised registration procedure in Karnataka. You may also request a local lawyer to verify the original sale deed to confirm its authenticity.
1. It's true that in earlier days, only the seller's signature was only affixed.
2. You can obtain Encumbrance Certificate for the property to track the transaction between the seller and the buyer, as well as Khatha Certificate showing the present owner of the property.
3. However, it's advised to get the property papers evaluated by any Lawyer and then proceed further.
The registered sale deed without the signature of the buyer in it cannot be said to be defective document or there is a defective title to the buyer.
If you are still not convinced about the deficiency you observed now, better produce the documents before an experienced advocate in the local for a legal opinion and proceed only if recommended.
Yes you are right as stated aforesaid. The previous sale deed determines your title
- As per the Madras High Court in AIR 1998 Madras 169 , unless agreement is signed both by the vendor and purchaser, it is not a valid contract is also not sound. An agreement of sale comes into existence when the vendor agrees to sell and the purchaser agrees to purchase, for an agreed consideration on agreed terms. It may be by a single document signed by both parties. It can also be by a document in two parts, each party signing one copy and then exchanging the signed copy as a consequence of which the purchaser has the copy signed by the vendor and a vendor has a copy signed by the purchaser.
- Hence, signature or thumb impression is need from both B and C in the sale deed.
- However, if there is thumb impression of B and he had taken the POA from C then this sale deed will be considered as valid.
Dear Sir,
You may get relevant circular to the effect that signature of the purchaser was not required during the year 2000. Otherwise it will be very difficult to prove the case and to prove your ownership if you purchase that property from a person who signature is not found in his sale deed.
Thank you all your valuable feedback. Really appreciate it I have a follow up question: I also observed that there is a minor mistake in the name of the purchaser (now seller to me) in the sale deed registered in year 2000, say instead of S. Raju it is mentioned as S.D Raju. What are the ways to correct it. I have asked the seller to get his name recitfied. But I doubt he can do it as the registration was done in the year 2000 so it would be hard to find his seller who sold him the property and get the rectification deed. What is the best alternative for rectification deed.? I see 2 issues in this deal 1. Purchasers signature not done 2. Minor mistake in the name of the purchaser. The property is of a huge value and I don't want to take any risk by compromising. So I request you to please advice me if I can go ahead with the property purchase with the above 2 mentioned issues.? Thank you and really appreciate your feedback.
Asked 4 years ago
Deed of rectification is necessary to rectify mistake in sale deed
2) if seller is not traceable buyer need to
file a suit before a court under Section 26 of Specific Relief Act 1963. The law provides for relief to parties in case the real intention of the party is not properly reflected in the documents executed because of a bona fide mistake of fact.
. The court can direct the rectification of an instrument, if it is satisfied that the deed does not express the real intention of the parties. This relief is entirely discretionary.
3) There is no specific period of limitation fixed for filing the suit for rectification. Thus the residuary Article- 113 is applicable.you ought to file suit within three years from the date of the sale deed. From the date of the sale deed itself, the time starts to run for filing the suit
As advised earlier, you have to get the original sale deed examined by a local lawyer in order to establish whether it is authentic and genuine. Please ask him to peruse all the prior documents at least for the past 30 years and certify the title of the present owners B & C. Check the name of one of the co-owners as reflected in the encumbrance certificate. Cross-check their other details such as their respective father's names, age and addresses as written in the sale deed (in their joint names) with their respective ID documents (PAN card, Aadhaar card etc.). If you are satisfied, you may go ahead. To be on the safer side, ask that person in whose name you observe a minor error to execute an affidavit-cum-indemnity.
1. The best alternative to rectification deed when the seller can't be traced is Declaration Deed to be executed solely by the Purchaser in the jurisdictional office of the Sub-Registrar.
2. Unless and until the property papers are thoroughly scrutinised, correct opinion can't be given.
The missing letter in the name of the seller can be rectified by demanding the seller to execute an indemnity bond as well as an affidavit stating that both the names are one and the same and also he would indemnify the buyer against any losses or would undertake the liability in case of any legal dispute in this regard in future.
The mistakes observed are ignorable in nature however to be safe you may exercise abundant caution by obtaining an affidavit as well as an indemnity bond from the seller to indemnify against the damages due to mistakes observed now.
Go for a registered rectification deed
Dear Client,
You can do it by rectification of deed and it is recommended to have an indemnity bond by the seller that this won't lead to any legal discrepancies.
Thank You.
many people do the mistake of not checking documents properly and then roam behind lawyers in tension.
Checking beforehand saves from lot of tension and expenses and loss.
so you are doing it right by checking details.
you should verify the documents through lawyer and then proceed further.
Along with Sale Deed, the EC and Khata documents are also important.
Name mistake could be covered there.
years of possession by B and C also matters along with A B C D family tree.
