Summary
A claimed prior agreement to sell did not establish ownership of an attached flat or entitlement to housing-society membership. The purported agreement was unsupported by its original and was found fabricated in the circumstances; it was not a registered conveyance transferring title. The Court restored the bank’s successful challenge to the claimant’s rights.
Issues
- Whether the alleged agreement defeated the bank’s attachment and entitled the claimant to society membership.
Held
- An agreement to sell is not a conveyance transferring title; sale requires the legally prescribed registered conveyance. The limited protection under Section 53A is defensive against the transferor or persons claiming under him and does not itself confer ownership. (¶ 15–16)
- Only a photocopy of the disputed agreement was produced, its signature was doubtful, and neither the owner nor his wife disclosed a sale during years of attachment litigation. The claimant asserted ownership only after the owner’s death. The Court found fabrication to escape recovery and rejected any title under it. (¶ 17–18)
- The High Court erred in relying merely on the asserted agreement’s earlier date without addressing the bank’s challenge to its validity and legal effect. Without title the claimant could not demand society membership. (¶¶ 13, 19)
Result
Appeals allowed; High Court and revisional/appellate orders accepting the claim set aside. Claim rejected and respondent held to have no right, title or interest in the flat or entitlement to society membership.