- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:2966 WP No. 32658 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 20TH DAY OF JANUARY, 2026 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE R DEVDAS WRIT PETITION NO. 32658 OF 2025 (KLR-RES) BETWEEN: 1. SRI MANJUNATHA R S/O. LATE RANGASWAMY, AGED ABOUT 28 YEARS, R/AT KANNANURU PALYA, MARASANDRA POST, KUDUR HOBLI, MAGADI TALUK, RAMANAGARA DISTRICT, RAMANAGARA-561 101. 2. SRI. HONNARAJU. R S/O. LATE RANGASWAMY, AGED ABOUT 28 YEARS, R/AT KANNANURU PALYA, MARASANDRA POST, KUDUR HOBLI, MAGADI TALUK, RAMANAGARA DISTRICT, RAMANAGARA-561 101. …PETITIONERS (BY SRI. M. PREETHAM, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. STATE OF KARNATAKA DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, M.S. BUILDING, BENGALURU-560 001, REPRESENTED BY ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY. 2. THE THASILDAR MAGADI TALUK, Digitally signed by JUANITA THEJESWINI Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:2966 WP No. 32658 of 2025 RAMANAGARA DISTRICT, RAMANAGARA-561 101. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. SESHU V, HCGP) THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASH THE ENDORSEMENT BEARING NO.RRT/CR/196/2024-25 DATED 09.05.2025 AT ANNEXURE -A, PASSED BY THE RESPONDENT AND ETC. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE R DEVDAS ORAL ORDER Learned High Court Government Pleader is directed to take notice for both the respondents. 2. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the representation given by the petitioners seeking entry of their names in the land records on the strength of a Will left behind by his father, who is the owner of Sy.No.13/P1 measuring 0.30 guntas, which are situated at Marasandra village, Kudur Hobli, Magadi Taluk, Ramanagara District, has been rejected by respondent No.2-Tahasildar, Magadi Taluk, in terms of Annexure-'A' endorsement dated 09.05.2025. Learned counsel submits that the Tahasildar is of the opinion that the petitioner - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:2966 WP No. 32658 of 2025 is required to obtain a probate of the Will and submit the same to the Tahasildar before seeking mutation entry on the strength of the Will. However, the learned counsel submits that this Court has held in the case of Smt.Ramadevi Vs. Tahsildar and Others in W.P.No.4131/2023 dated 24.02.2023, that the Tahsildar is required to follow the procedure prescribed in Section 129 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, before considering such a request based on a Will. The learned counsel would therefore submit that the issue is no more res-integra and therefore, a direction may be issued to the Tahsildar to re- consider the representation given by the petitioner in terms of the directions issued by this Court. 3. For the sake of convenience, relevant paragraphs of the orders passed by this Court in the case of Smt. Ramadevi (supra) is culled out as follows: "4. Having considered the various cases such as Vijayalakshmi and Another /vs./ The Deputy Commissioner, Gulbarga and Others reported in ILR 2007 KAR 3814, Sri P.K.Vasudevan /vs./ Deputy Commissioner–(2002) 4 KCCR 2285/(2002) Supreme (Kar) 283 and Shanthinath /vs./ Deputy Commissioner, Gulbarga Sub-division and Others-2010 (2) KCCR 992, this court held that in the absence of any - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:2966 WP No. 32658 of 2025 dispute, it is of course open to the revenue authorities to make an entry in the revenue records in favour of the person in whose favour the property is bequeathed under a Will, whether it is a registered or unregistered Will. However, having regard to the ratio laid down in the case of Vijayalakshmi and P.K.Vasudevan (supra), this court held that the Tahsildar was required to follow the procedure prescribed in Section 129 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, before considering such a request based on a Will. Section 129 clearly prescribes that the prescribed officer is required to make an entry in the Register of Mutations any such request/ application and at the same time, he shall post a complete copy of the entry in a conspicuous place in the chavadi (present day Gram Panchayat) and shall give written intimation to all persons appearing from the Record of Rights or Register of Mutations to be interested in the mutation and to any other person whom he has reason to believe to be interested therein. On such notification being published, if the prescribed Officer receives any objection, then he may direct the applicant to approach a competent Civil Court to get a declaration in his/her favour that he/she is the owner of the property in terms of the Will. On the contrary, if no such objections are received, the prescribed Officer may proceed to enter the name of the applicant on the strength of a Will, be it registered or unregistered. In the present case, the Tahasildar has not passed any orders till date." 5. Consequently, the writ petition is partly allowed. The respondent-Tahsildar is directed to publish the information regarding the claim made by the petitioner in the Marasandra village, Kudur Hobli, Magadi Taluk, Ramanagara District and call for objections from all interested persons. If objections are received within the prescribed time i.e., 30 days as provided in - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:2966 WP No. 32658 of 2025 Section 129 of the Act, then the respondent-Tahasildar is empowered to issue an endorsement to the petitioner regarding the objection and call upon him to get a declaration of his rights under the registered Will. If there are no objections raised from any quarters, the Tahasildar shall proceed to enter the names of the petitioners, insofar as, the properties in of Sy.No.13/P1 measuring 0.30 guntas, which are situated at Marasandra village, Kudur Hobli, Magadi Taluk, Ramanagara District are concerned, in terms of the registered Will dated 29.05.2017. Needless to observe that the entry made by the Tahsildar, if no objections are received, will not preclude any interested person to challenge the entries made in the land records. Ordered accordingly. 6. Learned High Court Government Pleader is permitted to file memo of appearance within a period of four weeks from today. Sd/- (R DEVDAS) JUDGE SSD