900 Property Documents Found Violating Real Estate Laws

Over the past two months, property registration offices in Pune, Mumbai, and Thane districts have seen significant breaches of the MahaRERA norms and the state’s Fragmentation Act.

A senior revenue official revealed that over 900 documents have been implicated in these violations.

The Inspector General of Registration and Controller of Stamps (IGR) ordered an audit of registrations from 2020 to 2022 to address malpractice in property registrations statewide.

A specialised three-member team from the state registration department examined approximately 50,000 property documents across several offices in these districts.

Of these, violations of the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) Act were found in 200 cases, 700 documents breached fragmentation rules, and 25 violated other regulations.

Additionally, 600 documents are being investigated for undervaluation, potentially resulting in a revenue loss of Rs 100-200 crore due to reduced stamp duty and registration fees.

Committees have been established to scrutinise property documents across all 550 state offices, ensuring compliance with the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA), 2016, and the Maharashtra Prevention of Fragmentation and Consolidation of Holdings Act, 1947.

RERA mandates registration for realtors developing residential or commercial projects exceeding 500 sqm or more than eight flats across phases.

The Fragmentation Act restricts the registration of small land parcels, with the Maharashtra IGR permitting only properties of 11 gunthas (11,000 sq ft) or larger.

The state registers 25-30 lakh documents annually, and all registrations from the past three years will be reviewed, with a comprehensive report submitted to the government. The initial scrutiny in some offices is just the beginning of a statewide effort.

Election duties had delayed the process, but there are calls for a dedicated cell to manage such inspections due to the vast number of documents.

Furthermore, 82 officials from the state registration department are currently under investigation for illegal registrations, including 44 from Pune district.