The Delhi High Court, led by Justice Sachin Datta, has overturned a decision made by the Collector of Stamps that required Gurdev Raj Kumar to pay extra stamp duty and a penalty. The Court has instructed the authorities to return Rs 2,58,700 to him within six weeks.
The case is of a residential lease deed executed for a property in Vasant Vihar, New Delhi. The deed mentioned that the premises shall be used for residential purposes.
In the process of GST registration, the lease was impounded on the foundation that the GST had been included in the lease amount for the objective of computing the stamp duty, which the authorities considered as deficient stamping.
Thereafter, the collector passed an order dated October 19, 2020, asking for Rs 51,740 as deficient stamp duty and ₹2,06,960 as penalty. The applicant paid the amount to ease the registration, but thereafter contested the decision before the High Court.
Justice Sachin Datta said that leasing of a residential dwelling for use as a residence is not charged under GST, and therefore, the GST can not be included in the rental value for determining stamp duty. The Court, that the Collector’s approach was misconceived and legally unsustainable.
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Subsequently, the court set aside the impugned order and asked for the refund of the whole amount collected from the applicant.
| Case Title | Mr. Gurdev Raj Kumar vs. Collector of Stamps (Government of NCT of Delhi) |
| Case No. | W.P.(C) 1463/2021 |
| For Petitioner | Mr. Amish Tandon, Ms. Charchika Yadav, Advocates |
| For Respondent | Mr. Lalltaksh Joshi, Ms. Ananya Sanjiv Saraogi, Advocates |
| Delhi High Court | Read Order |
