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Section 54: Current indexes and entries therein

Registration Act • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

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Act 1908
Section 53 All 93 Sections of Registration Act Section 55

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 54

Section 54 requires every registering office to maintain current indexes of contents of register-books, ensuring immediate public searchability of all admitted documents.

  • Current Indexes Maintenance: In every registration office, current indexes shall be kept of the contents of the register-books.
  • Immediate Updating: Registering officers shall without unnecessary delay make the required entries in the indexes after a document is copied into the register.
  • Public Accessibility Nexus: Forms the search engine allowing advocates, purchasers, and financial institutions to locate property transactions.
Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Suraj Lamp & Industries Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Haryana, (2012) 1 SCC 656: The Supreme Court noted that the indexation mechanism under Section 54 and Section 55 makes property records discoverable, preventing fraudulent double sales.
  • Gurbax Singh v. Kartar Singh, (2002) 2 SCC 611: Affirmed the operational necessity of continuous index updating to protect subsequent bona fide purchasers.
Courtroom Practice & Strategic Litigation Guidance:

Ensure that the Sub-Registrar's staff enters the property particulars into the current digital index immediately upon registration to reflect your title in official encumbrance certificates.

Section 53 All 93 Sections of Registration Act Section 55