Section 54: “Sale” defined

Leading cases

• Suraj Lamp and Industries (P) Ltd. v. State of Haryana (2011)Sale Agreement/General Power of Attorney/Will (GPA sale) transactions do not convey title or create any interest in immovable property; immovable property can be transferred only by a registered deed of conveyance.
• Satyabrata Ghose v. Mugneeram Bangur and Co. (1953)The Court held that frustration in India is governed by Section 56 of the Contract Act, reading 'impossible' in a practical sense, and that wartime requisition of the land did not frustrate a contract to sell a plot.
• Shakeel Ahmed v. Syed Akhlaq Hussain (2023)No title to immovable property passes under an unregistered agreement to sell or general power of attorney, so a suit for possession and mesne profits founded on such documents is not maintainable.

Questions on this section

8 questions in 28 of our papers cite Section 54. Try these from the free papers:

1. 1. Consider the following statements under Section 54 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882: 1. A sale of tangible immoveable property of the value of one hundred rupees or upwards can be made only by a registered instrument. 2. A sale of a reversion of a value less than one hundred rupees may be made by delivery of possession. 3. A sale of tangible immoveable property of a value less than one hundred rupees may be made by delivery of the property. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

   A.1 and 3 onlyB.1, 2 and 3C.1 and 2 onlyD.2 and 3 only
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2. 2. In Smt. Rano Singh v. Sh. Gurbax Singh (D) Th LRs (16 October 2026), the plaintiffs claimed possession of a plot on the strength of a 1952 agreement to sell in favour of their predecessor, though no sale deed was ever executed in his favour. Applying Section 54 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, the Supreme Court reiterated that an agreement to sell:

   A.does not pass title at once, but does so after the buyer's possession for twelve yearsB.transfers ownership to the buyer once he has paid a substantial part of the agreed priceC.does not, of itself, create any interest in or charge on the property agreed to be soldD.transfers ownership only if the agreement itself is registered, even without a sale deed
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3. 3. In Suraj Lamp & Industries (P) Ltd. v. State of Haryana, (2012) 1 SCC 656, the Supreme Court examined transfers of immoveable property through a sale agreement, a general power of attorney and a will ('SA/GPA/Will' transactions). Which of the following is in line with that judgment?

   A.They operate as a completed sale under Section 54 once stamp duty on the market value is paid.B.They are void, and the buyer cannot rely on them for any purpose in any proceeding.C.They create an equitable interest in the property that binds every later purchaser from the vendor.D.They may be used to obtain specific performance or to defend possession under Section 53A.
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