With restricted use of Special Power of Attorney (SPA) and General Power of Attorney (GPA), the Telangana Government plans to seize malpractices in property registration. This move may lead to legal obligations due to certain central Acts that may need change, say senior officials.

On behalf of the owner, the SPA shall provide an individual with documents signed by the property owner to the sub-registrar and complete the registration process. GPA is given to the property owner’s person to sell, mortgage, or lease on their behalf and withdraw at any time.

CM believes that each citizen should visit the passport office, regardless of their social status, to obtain a passport; the property owner should also visit the sub-registrar’s office to register the properties. The issue at hand saw the light of day because several people are duped under GPA and SPA. Several fake GPAs and SPAs came into the light where one property was sold to several people. The R&S department cancelled thousands of property registrations due to fake GPAs.

The other side of the coin is that SPA and GPA benefit older people, citizens with health issues, and NRIs. The Center should make changes to acts like the Registration Act, the Powers of Attorney Act, the Indian Contract Act, and the Indian Stamp Act to avoid these malpractices.

Because introducing amendments to the Act can be tedious, the government plans to ban GPAs and SPAs through executive order. This change would then be similar to banning registration holidays since September 7th.

The R&S District Registrar stated that “If the government wishes to avoid abuse of GPA and SPA, the approval powers can be granted to senior R&S department officials or include multiple agencies as they do in deciding to reduce the government rate for land registration under Section 47(A),”