Section 32 Registration Act: Persons to present documents for registration

Section 32 of Registration Act: Persons to present documents for registration

Official Bare Act Text

Override / Mandate Mens Rea (Intent) Actus Reus (Conduct) Punishment Limitation Monetary

Except in the cases mentioned in sections 31, 88 and 89, every document to be registered under this Act, whether such registration be compulsory or optional, shall be presented at the proper registration-office,—

(a) by some person executing or claiming under the same, or, in the case of a copy of a decree or order, claiming under the decree or order, or

(b) by the representative or assign of such a person, or

(c) by the agent of such a person, representative or assign, duly authorised by power-of-attorney executed and authenticated in manner hereinafter mentioned.

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 32

Section 32 of the Registration Act, 1908 specifies the categories of persons entitled to present documents for registration, establishing a mandatory condition precedent for valid registration.

Procedural Rule & Jurisdiction: The presentation requirement is jurisdictional: presentation by an unauthorized stranger or an agent holding an unauthenticated power of attorney renders the subsequent registration entirely void.
Jurisdiction & Compliance: The registering officer has no statutory jurisdiction to accept a document presented by anyone other than the persons enumerated in Section 32.

But if the principal executed the deed and merely sends an agent to present it for registration, the agent must hold a specialized power of attorney authenticated under Section 33.

Key Landmark Precedents:

Kishore Chandra Singh Deo v. Babu Ganesh Prasad Bhagat, AIR 1954 SC 316: The Supreme Court held that presentation by a person authorized under Section 32 is a condition precedent to the registration officer's jurisdiction; presentation by an unauthorized person renders the registration void.
Rajni Tandon v. Dulal Ranjan Ghosh Dastidar, (2009) 14 SCC 782: The Supreme Court clarified that where an attorney holding a valid general power of attorney himself executes the deed as executant, he presents the document as executant under Section 32(a), and Section 33 authentication is not attracted.

Legal Commentary:

Under the landmark *Rajni Tandon* ruling, if an attorney executes the deed *in the name and on behalf of* the principal, the attorney is the 'executant' under Section 32(a) and can present the deed directly. But if the principal executed the deed and merely sends an agent to present it for registration, the agent must hold a specialized power of attorney authenticated under Section 33.

Section 32: Persons to present documents for registration

Section 32 of Registration Act: Persons to present documents for registration

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 32