Unregistered Sale Agreement Can Be Admitted in Specific Performance Suits: SC Clarifies in Muruganandam v. Muniyandi

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Summary of Hon'ble  Supreme Court judgment in Muruganandam vs. Muniyandi (Dead) through LRs, Civil Appeal No. 6543 of 2025:

Date of Judgment: 8 May 2025

Bench: Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha & Justice Joymalya Bagchi
Citation: 2025 INSC 652

Background

In this civil appeal, the appellant, Muruganandam, sought to place on record an unregistered agreement of sale dated 01.01.2000 as evidence in a pending civil suit for specific performance and permanent injunction. The agreement, though photocopied and annexed to the plaint, was not previously marked as an exhibit due to oversight.

When the trial court rejected his interlocutory application under Order 7 Rule 14(3) read with Section 151 CPC, citing the document’s unstamped and unregistered status, the appellant approached the High Court in revision. The High Court affirmed the trial court’s decision. Muruganandam then appealed to the Supreme Court.

Supreme Court's Observations

  • The Apex Court analyzed Section 49 of the Registration Act, 1908, particularly its proviso.

  • It reaffirmed the principle laid down in S. Kaladevi v. V.R. Somasundaram [(2010) 5 SCC 401], where the Court had allowed unregistered documents to be used as proof of an oral agreement of sale in suits seeking specific performance.

  • The Court clarified that such documents, though unregistered, can be admitted in evidence not as proof of a completed sale but as evidence of a contract.

  • Since the photocopy was already part of the record and the original was now sought for the same limited purpose, no prejudice would be caused to the respondent.

Key Legal Takeaways

  • Section 49 Proviso allows flexibility: Even unregistered documents affecting immovable property may be received as evidence of a contract in specific performance cases.

  • Relevance of document's purpose: If the intention is to prove an oral agreement rather than assert title, the bar under Section 49 does not apply rigidly.

  • The respondent is free to challenge the document's validity and relevance before the trial court.

Judgment Outcome

  • The Supreme Court set aside the Madras High Court's decision.

  • Allowed the appellant’s application to mark the document dated 01.01.2000.

  • Emphasized that the trial court remains competent to evaluate the document's evidentiary value.

Conclusion

This ruling serves as a significant reiteration of evidentiary principles relating to unregistered sale agreements. For litigants in property and contract disputes, the decision underscores the importance of legal context over technical compliance, especially in specific performance suits.


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