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Victory against Corruption at Sub-Registrar office


Its with great sense of satisfaction and pride that I share our experience in dealing with corruption successfully at the Sub-Registrar’s office in Bangalore.


We booked a flat with a reputed builder in Bangalore. After a 2 year delay, we got possession of our apartment recently and it was time to also get it registered.
A day before, the builder’s office was very clear in their instructions to me that I had to carry 15,000 rupees as “Misc expenses”, which is very obvious that it was for bribing Govt officials at the Sub-registrar’s office. I spoke to a few folks who had already registered their apartment on their experience and they indicated that they had not paid any bribe. My resolve became even stronger that I dont need to pay any bribes.
On the D-Day, we are ready with the Demand Drafts for the registration, stamp duty AND our firm resolve to stand up against this corrupt practice. We arrive at the Sub-Registrar’s office; we have two guys to help us with the registration process — one is the builder’s representative (hereinafter referred as Mr.B) and the other guy from a 3rd party Legal Authority (Mr.L).
The interesting discussions start now —
1. Mr.B asks me to give me the DDs. I give it to him. He then asks me to handover 15,000 rupees cash. I tell him there is no need of that and I can take care of it.
2. Mr.B says that the process cannot start unless Misc expenses are provided. I excuse myself as though I want to make a call. I then go back and ask him what would happen if I dont pay; to which I am told (Mr.B & Mr.L in Chorus) that the process can start once the money is given else it will be delayed. They show me money in their pocket and tell me others have paid as well and this is mandatory. They show me another person who they call as an “agent”, who needs the money.
3. I indicate to them that I can wait, but will not pay.
4. Mr.B, Mr.L then tell the agent in hush hush voice pointing towards me that I dont want to pay
5. We arrived at the Registrar’s office at 11:45am and its now 12:30
6. To my amazement, I saw other residents from the same apartment complex walking in one-by-one; uttering not even a single word and paying up the 15,000 rupees.
7. Our registration is put hold, 9 other registrations happen; with each of them not taking more then 20-30mins.
8. Its about 1:30 now, I ask Mr.B how long I need to wait. He says he doesnt know. He then takes the pain to remind me of another resident who is a very aggressive chap who had fought against the builder for delays; and that he himself had paid the bribe and asks me to do the same. I tell him politely that I dont want to be doing the same thing. I then tell him that he can delay as long as he wants, but I will wait.
9. Once most of the registrations are done and its around lunch, something very interesting happens….Negotiation….


A. I am told that the Misc expenses have been reduced to 10K and ask me to pay. I say NO
B. More waiting….Its few minutes past 2pm now
C. One more negotiation..Mr.B & L get desperate. They tell me this is going nowhere and show their frustration. They give me a final offer – 7500 rupees. I say NO and you should have seen their faces
D. Mr.B now tries to put some pressure on me, tells Mr.L that he needs to back to office for a meeting and he cant wait any more. I dont react..
E. Mr.B gives back both the DDs. So I ask the question – “Are you guys telling me that you cannot register my property unless I pay up”? I dont get a straight answer. When asked the same question after a few mins, Mr.L gets irritated and asks me why I ask such cross questions. He tells me that it will get delayed and I tell him – “I will wait”. I then ask him to give back the legal fees cheque as well.
We go for lunch and started looking for Vigilance, Corruption Bureau numbers; but dont get them. While having lunch, I get a call. The guy tells me that he is from the Legal office (same as Mr.L) and tells me that he will get my registration done. When I get back to the office, I realize the guy who had called me was the one Mr.L had earlier referred as the agent.
By now I realized completely that Mr.B, L1, L2 are all bloody “Agents” for the Sub-Registrar who broker deals and all of them get their share! What a shame, these guys represent reputed companies. Because of the Lok Ayuktha raids, no govt official directly accepts the money. Its these agents who do the job.
L2 now gets my registration done in a jiffy!! The moment the registration is done, B & L1 dont show their face to me. They just vanish. L2 tells me that I can get Certified copies of my Sale Deed immediately if I pay up 250rupees or fill up application form to go via the normal route and take it the next day. I tell him that I will follow the normal application form route. Frustrates him even more….He then gives me some wrong instructions about application form, and asks me to take Document No. from the Builder’s office whereas the No. is available right next in the scanning counter. L2 vanishes as well…We fill up the forms and got the Doc No. as well and are asked to come next day to pick up Encumbrance Certificate and Certified Copies. I even got receipts for the doc scanning charges & application forms!!
We leave the office after this ordeal…but with great sense of achievement of NOT falling in line with the corrupt practices but fighting against it and coming out victoriously. Some of the things that worked for us —


1. We looked cool throughout. No nervousness on our faces. We were ready to wait for many more hours or come on multiple days!
2. I kept asking just one question which made them quite uncomfortable — “Are you saying that registration will not be done UNTIL I pay up”. It definitely gave them a feeling that I would take further steps as no one can refuse to register my property.
3. Support & Conviction – All of us were firm that we will fight back and not give in. That helps.
TO REMEMBER — Its your right to get the property registered. The office cannot refuse. They can raise objections if you are trying to hide something..but if thats not the case, there is no way to refuse. Most people dont have time (we had to spend 4 hours there) or inclination to fight back against the system…So these guys have a field time as NO one refuses to pay. If people refuse, these guys cant do anything..


I will need to do the same for Khata also..I am told guys ask for Bribe for giving Khata also. But with this experience behind me, dont think I am too worried about handling it…
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:corruption real estate, property registration, Say NO to corruption, Sub-Registrar office bribe

Refusing to give bribe and not give in even under tremendous pressure requires great courage. Hats off.

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Hm... You had time and patience.

In Toronto, the transactions are driven electronically only.

Modi ji has declared that he would computerize Govt. transactions so there is no delay and there is transparency. My understanding is that he has already implemented that in Gujarat. I am not sure but someone from Gujarat can confirm that.

Interestingly, in his hey days in Gujarat, BJP lost from Gandhinagar (capital city). The reson is that most of the residents are Govt employees and their sources of corruption dried and died under Modi.

I guess had you stated that you are a card carrying member of AAP and had you been wearing a T shirt with smiling face of Kejriwal on the front and angry posture of Somnath raiding the house of pleasure, you would not have to wait so long.

I registered a house plot in 2008 in Gujarat and paid nothing extra.

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DSD

Quote:

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Originally posted by dsd

I registered a house plot in 2008 in Gujarat and paid nothing extra.

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adamthorat,

This is may be a lone case. I am from the same city, bought and sold properties, paid up at the sub registrar's office to enable smooth transactions. That's common. Its just not only for the official. The money goes all the way to the top during transfers, etc. The sub registrar has to pay top people to get / cancel transfers. The cycle continues. At least u ahd the time and patience to stay put. Good job! Not all can do it.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Nightmare

Interestingly, in his hey days in Gujarat, BJP lost from Gandhinagar (capital city). The reson is that most of the residents are Govt employees and their sources of corruption dried and died under Modi.

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