- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31265-DB WA No. 1574 of 2024 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 13TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2025 PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR. VIBHU BAKHRU, CHIEF JUSTICE AND THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE C M JOSHI WRIT APPEAL NO. 1574 OF 2024 (KLR-RR/SUR) BETWEEN: 1. KOUSLYA S AGED ABOUT 34 YEARS D/O SHIVARAMAIAH R/OF HALENIJAGAL VILLAGE DEVARAHAOSAHALLI POST SOMPURA HOBLI NELAMANGALA TALUK BENGALURU RURAL DISTRICT - 562 111 …APPELLANT (BY SRI. GIRIDHAR H, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA VIDHANA SOUDHA BENGALURU - 560 001 REP BY SECRETARY DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE 2. THE VILLAGE ACCOUNTANT SOMPURA HOBLI NELAMANGALA TALUK BENGALURU RURAL DISTRICT Digitally signed by AMBIKA H B Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31265-DB WA No. 1574 of 2024 3. THE REVENUE INSPECTOR SOMPURA HOBLI NELAMANGALA TALUK BENGALURU RURAL DISTRICT - 562 111 4. THE TAHSILDAR NELAMANGALA NELAMANGALA TALUK BENGALURU RURAL DISTRICT - 562 111 RESPONDENT No.1 TO 4 BY HCGP …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI K.S. HARISH, AGA) THIS WRIT APPEAL IS FILED UNDER SECTION 4 OF THE KARNATAKA HIGH COURT ACT PRAYING TO SET ASIDE THE ORDER DATED 20.08.2024 PASSED BY THE HONBLE SINGLE JUDGE OF THIS HON'BLE COURT IN WP No.19662/2024 AND TO ALLOW THE WRIT PETITION FILED BY THE APPELLANT DIRECTING THE RESPONDENT No.4 TO ENTER THE REPORT THE ACQUISITION RIGHT OVER THE NAME OF THE AND ETC. THIS APPEAL, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING, THIS DAY, JUDGMENT WAS DELIVERED THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. VIBHU BAKHRU ,CHIEF JUSTICE and HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE C M JOSHI ORAL JUDGMENT (PER: HON'BLE MR. VIBHU BAKHRU,CHIEF JUSTICE) 1. Issue notice. The learned Additional Government Advocate accepts notice for the respondents. - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31265-DB WA No. 1574 of 2024 2. For the reasons stated in the application - I.A No.1/2024, the same is allowed. The delay in filing the appeal is condoned. 3. The appellant has filed the present appeal impugning an order dated 20.08.2024 passed by the learned Single Judge in Writ Petition No.19662/2024 (KLR-RR/SUR) captioned 'Kousalya S v. the State of Karnataka and Ors.' 4. The appellant had filed the aforementioned petition impugning an order dated 29.05.2024 passed by respondent No.4 [the Tahsildar] rejecting the appellant's application for recording the rights in respect of the land measuring 0-23 Guntas comprising in Survey No.123/4 situated in Halenijagal Village, Sompura, Hobli, Nelamangala Taluk, Bengaluru Rural District [subject land]. The appellant claimed that the said land had been transmitted to her pursuant to a Will executed by Poojaramaiah who has since expired. The Tahsildar has rejected the said application on the ground that "the said Will does not appear to be probated in the civil court." According to the Tahsildar, since the Will in question had not been probated, the appellant's rights emanating from the - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31265-DB WA No. 1574 of 2024 said unregistered Will could not be taken into account, without the same being probated. 5. The appellant had preferred the writ petition assailing the said order. However, the learned Single Judge rejected the said petition for the following reasons as are indicated in paragraph 3 of the impugned judgment: "The judgment cited by the learned counsel for the petitioner are not applicable to the present case on hand. Unless there is proof of Will in the manner known to law, the said Will cannot be considered as an instrument under which a right is acquired within the meaning of Section 128 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act which contemplates acquisition of right by succession, survivorship, inheritance, partition, purchase, mortgage, gift, lease or otherwise. Will does not fall within the definition of word “otherwise”. Therefore, unless petitioner is able to substantiate the genuineness of the Will by approaching a competent Civil Court, no indulgence can be granted." 6. In our view, the impugned judgment is flawed as it proceeds on the basis that acquisition of rights pursuant to Will are not acquisition of rights by ‘succession’. 7. Section 128 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, [hereafter 'the Act'] which is referred to by the learned Single Judge reads as under: - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31265-DB WA No. 1574 of 2024 "128. Acquisitions of rights to be reported - (1)Any person acquiring by succession, survivorship, inheritance, partition, purchase, mortgage, gift, lease or otherwise, any right as holder, occupant, owner, mortgagee, landlord or tenant of the land or assignee of the rent or revenue thereof, shall report orally or in writing his acquisition of such right to the Prescribed Officer of the village within three months from the date of such acquisition, and the said Officer shall at once give a written acknowledgment of the receipt of the report to the person making it: Provided that where the person acquiring the right is a minor or otherwise disqualified, his guardian or other person having charge of his property shall make the report to the Prescribed Officer: Provided further that any person acquiring a right by virtue of a registered document shall be exempted form the obligation to report to the prescribed officer. Provided also that any person reporting under this sub-section the acquisition by him of a right in partition in respect of the land shall annex with the report a sketch showing the metes and bounds and other prescribed particulars of such land and such person shall get the sketch prepared by a Licensed Surveyor or as prescribed. Explanation I - The rights mentioned above include a mortgage without possession but do not include an easement or a charge not amounting to a mortgage of the kind specified in Section 100 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 (Central Act No. 4 of 1882). Explanation II. - A person in whose favour a mortgage is discharged or extinguished or a lease determined acquires a right within the meaning of this section. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), the State Government may, by notification, appoint any Revenue Officer to whom a report under sub-section (1) may be made, in which case such - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31265-DB WA No. 1574 of 2024 Officer shall give a written acknowledgment of the receipt of such report to the person making it, and forward the report to the Prescribed Officer of the village concerned. (3) If any person makes a report under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2),- (a) after the period of three months but within the period of one year from the date of acquisition of the right, the report shall be received on payment of a penalty of two rupees; (b) after a period of one year from the date of such acquisition, the report shall be received on payment of a penalty of not less than two rupees but not exceeding ten rupees, as may be ordered,- (i) by the Tahsildar, in case the report is made under sub-section (1) to the prescribed officer, or (ii) by the Revenue Officer, in case the report is made to such officer under sub-section (2). (4) No document by virtue of which any person acquires a right in any land as holder, occupant, owner, mortgagee, landlord or tenant or assignee of the rent or revenue thereunder, shall be registered under the Indian Registration Act, 1908 (Central Act 12 of 1908), unless the person liable to pay the registration fee also pays to the Registering Authority such fees as may be prescribed for making the necessary entries in the Record of Rights and registers referred to in Section 129; and on the registration of such a document, the Registering Authority shall make a report of the acquisition of the right to the Prescribed Officer." 8. It is clear from the plain language of Section 128 that a person acquiring rights, inter alia, by succession is required to report the acquisition of rights either orally or in writing to the - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31265-DB WA No. 1574 of 2024 Prescribed Officer. A Will is a testamentary instrument and it is the appellant's case that she has acquired rights of the subject land by testamentary succession. 9. The learned Additional Government Advocate appearing for the respondents fairly states that the probate to the Will in question is not required. However, notices are required to be given to the natural heirs of the testator. 10. We, accordingly, set aside the impugned order as well the order dated 29.05.2024 passed by the Tahsildar, which was impugned in the writ petition and remand the matter to the Tahsildar to conduct necessary enquiry and pass an appropriate order. 11. The appeal is allowed in the aforesaid terms. Sd/- (VIBHU BAKHRU) CHIEF JUSTICE Sd/- (C M JOSHI) JUDGE AHB List No.: 1 Sl No.: 23