Property ownership requires registered transfer; unregistered assignments and section 53A did not make the assessee owner.

Ownership of immovable property could not be acquired through unregistered assignments derived from a licence, because tangible immovable property requires transfer by registered instrument and section 53A of the Transfer of Property Act gives only a defensive equity, not title. The arrangements with flat purchasers showed that the assessee had passed its entire right, title and interest to the individual holders, with only common management and preservation terms remaining. On that footing, the assessee was not the owner of the building for the relevant assessment years and was not assessable under section 9 as owner of the property.

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Issues: Whether the assessee was liable to be assessed under section 9 of the Indian Income-tax Act as owner of the building for the relevant assessment years.

Analysis: The assessee derived its interest through unregistered assignments of rights that had themselves originated in a licence which did not of itself confer legal interest in the land or building. Under the Transfer of Property Act, tangible immovable property cannot be transferred without a registered instrument, and the doctrine of part performance under section 53A confers only a defensive equity and does not create title. The original licence and the later arrangements did not vest ownership in the assessee. Further, the agreements with the flat purchasers showed that the assessee had transferred its entire right, title and interest in the property to the individual flat holders, subject only to common stipulations for management and preservation of the building, which did not preserve any proprietary ownership in the assessee.

Conclusion: The assessee was not the owner of the building during the relevant assessment years and was not liable to be assessed under section 9 as owner of the property.

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