In a recent ruling, the Supreme Court granted relief to a woman by exempting her from paying stamp duty on a flat she received as part of a divorce settlement. The property transfer, arising from a mutual agreement between the estranged couple, was deemed exempt under the Registration Act, 1908.
A bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta reviewed the case, which originated from a dispute over a Mumbai flat jointly claimed by both spouses. The couple, engaged in mediation while resolving their divorce proceedings, ultimately agreed that the husband would relinquish his rights to the property, and in return, the wife would forgo any claim to alimony.
The legal question before the court was whether this settlement required the wife to pay stamp duty to formalize ownership. Citing a precedent from Mukesh v. The State of Madhya Pradesh & Anr. (2024), the court ruled that since the flat was part of the compromise proceedings, it fell under Section 17(2)(vi) of the Registration Act, making the transfer exempt from stamp duty.
“The flat in question is an integral part of the settlement, forming a key component of the legal proceedings. As such, the exemption under Section 17(2)(vi) applies, and its registration solely in the wife’s name does not necessitate stamp duty payment,” the court stated.
Following this decision, the Supreme Court instructed the Sub-Registrar to complete the property transfer in the wife’s name without additional charges. The court also dissolved the marriage by mutual consent, finalizing the settlement.
