Registration (Amend) Bill placed in JS

Introducing the Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2004, Law Minister Moudud Ahmed told the House that the passing of the bill would make the land management system adequate and effective.

The bill proposed to amend Section 17 and introduce five new sections through amending the Registration Act, 1908.

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Section 17A, a new section, says, "Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Act or any other law for the time being in force, a contract for sale of any immovable property shall be in writing and registered."

The bill proposed that contract for sale shall be registered within 30 days from the date of execution failing which the contract shall stand void.

The bill said every instrument of transfer required to be compulsorily registered under this Act should be written clearly and briefly with particulars necessary to convey the intention of the parties along with the description of the property and nature of the transaction.

The bill's new section 22A says, the photographs of both the execution and the recipient shall be pasted on every instrument and parties shall sign and put their left thumb impression across their photographs in the instrument. The government may, by notification in the official Gazette, prescribe a format for the purposes of this section.

The bill has proposed that registration fee payable for registration of a contract for sale of immovable property shall be Tk 500 where valuation of the property is not more than Tk5 lakh.

It proposed Tk 1,000 as registration fee where valuation of the property is above Tk5 lakh and not more than Tk 50 lakh and Tk 2,000 where valuation of the property is above Tk 50 lakh.

The rate of registration would be one per cent of the valuation of the property, but not less than Tk 500, where the transferee has taken possession of the property or any part there of, or being already in possession continues to be in possession of the property or any part there of in part performance of the contract.

Registration fee payable for registration of an instrument of heba of any immovable property under the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) shall be Tk100 irrespective of the value of the property.

Moudud also placed two other bills -- the Transfer of Property (Amendment) Bill, 2004 and the Specific Relief (Amendment) Bill, 2004 seeking to bring about momentum in the existing land management system.

The three bills were referred to the standing committee on law, justice and parliamentary affairs ministry for scrutiny.