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Bhimabai Mahadeo Kambekar (Dead) Thr. LRs v. Arthur Import & Export Co.

Civil Appeal · 2019 INSC 120Decided 31 Jan 2019
Civil Appeal No. 1330 of 2019
Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre · Justice R. Subhash Reddy

Background

The appellants challenged a Bombay High Court order that had dismissed their writ petition concerning disputed entries in revenue records for a piece of land. The dispute had travelled through the Superintendent of Land Records, the Deputy Director of Land Records in appeal, the State in revision, and finally the High Court in a writ petition, before reaching the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court upheld the long-settled legal position that mutation of land in revenue records neither creates nor extinguishes title, and has no presumptive value on ownership: it only determines who pays land revenue. Since civil suits over title to the same land were already pending between the parties, the Court held it would be improper to examine factual questions about the correctness of the revenue entries in this appeal. Finding no error in the High Court's reasoning, the Court dismissed the appeal.

Lesson Learnt

An entry in government revenue/mutation records (like the "7/12 extract" or similar land records) is not proof of ownership: it only matters for paying land revenue. Actual title disputes must be resolved through a civil suit, not by relying on revenue entries alone.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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