Revenue Department circular: selling your share of a jointly held 7/12 plot will need the land records ‘C’ copy of your measured share or the co-owners’ written consent

Many family farms in Maharashtra have several names on one 7/12 extract: brothers, sisters, uncles, heirs whose land was never formally divided. If you hold such a share and want to sell it, the deed you take to the sub-registrar must now carry one of two documents. Either the ‘C’ copy (क प्रत) the land records department issues after measuring your share, or the written consent or no-objection certificate of the other co-owners on the extract. Without either, the sub-registrar will refuse to register the deed.

Sakal (Pune), Prahaar and Navarashtra reported on Thursday, 22 October, that the Revenue Department has laid down this procedure for sub-registrars in a circular. According to Sakal, the circular was issued by Under Secretary Vinayak Lavte of the Revenue Department, and every sub-registrar in the state has been told to apply it strictly.

Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule told Agrowon the same day that, until now, any one of four people named on a 7/12 could sell, and the question of which part of the land had actually been sold led to quarrels and court cases. He said the decision, taken at Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s instruction, means a sale should not be registered unless the share has first been measured and separated.

What the sub-registrar will look for (as reported)

• ‘C’ copy attached: if the co-owner who is selling attaches the land records department’s measurement ‘C’ copy for that share, the sub-registrar registers the deed without asking for the other co-owners’ consent or NOC.
• No ‘C’ copy: the written consent or NOC of the other co-owners must then be attached as part of the deed.
• Neither document: the deed will not be registered.
• Who it affects: any co-owner selling a share of land that has more than one name on a single 7/12 extract, and anyone buying such a share.

What is still unclear

The reports do not all agree. TV9 Marathi, News18 Lokmat, Tarun Bharat (Nagpur) and a second Prahaar report say all three documents are required: co-owners’ consent, their NOC and the ‘C’ copy. The reports that give the circular’s wording in detail, from Sakal, Prahaar, Navarashtra and Tarun Bharat (tarunbharat.com), say either the ‘C’ copy or written consent is enough. We have set out the second reading above because it appears closer to the circular’s text.

The circular’s number, its date and the day it takes effect have not been published anywhere. We could not find it among the Revenue Department orders posted on the state’s GR website between 15 and 22 October, on the registration and stamps department’s list of circulars, or on Mahasamvad. We will update this report once the text is available. Until then, ask your taluka sub-registrar’s office which documents it will want before you fix a deal.

Why the change

Prahaar’s report notes that Section 44 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 already lets a co-owner transfer their own share. According to the reports, the circular says the trouble came when other co-owners were not consulted: family rifts, boundary fights, complaints at registration offices and a growing number of court petitions. A measured share is fixed on a map, so the buyer also knows exactly which piece of ground they are paying for.

If you want to sell your share: step by step

• Step 1: Download a digitally signed 7/12 and 8A from the Premium Services section of the Mahabhumi portal (mahabhumi.gov.in). The land records department charges ₹15 per copy. The free ‘Bhulekh’ copy is for viewing only and is not valid for legal purposes.
• Step 2: If all co-owners agree to the sale, take their written consent or NOC and make it part of the sale deed.
• Step 3: If consent is hard to get, have your share measured (a pot-hissa measurement). On the Mahabhumi portal, open ‘e-Mojni Version-2’ under Premium Services, choose your division and register as a new user.
• Step 4: The application needs your own identity document, the names, addresses and mobile numbers of at least three co-holders of the same survey or gat number, and details of the neighbouring holders on three sides. Download the filled form, sign it and upload it again.
• Step 5: Pay the measurement fee by challan through the GRAS system; for a pot-hissa measurement the challan head is 0029123601. The fee depends on whether the land is inside or outside municipal limits, its area, and whether you choose regular or fast-track measurement.
• Step 6: You get a CAN number when you apply and an MRN number once the office accepts the case. A regular measurement usually takes about 90 days and a fast-track one about 30. Be present on the measurement date; if you are absent, a revisit fee applies.
• Step 7: When the measurement is done, the ‘C’ copy (the measurement map) appears in your login with a digital signature and the land’s latitude and longitude. Download it and submit it with the sale deed at the sub-registrar’s office.
• Step 8: If you disagree with the measurement, you can file an objection within the set time at the taluka Deputy Superintendent of Land Records’ office.

Keep in mind

• According to the land records department, a pot-hissa measurement can be done only for an area larger than 0.20 hectare of dry (jirayat) land or 0.10 hectare of irrigated (bagayat) land.
• Inside a municipal council, municipal corporation or planning authority area, a pot-hissa measurement also needs a provisionally approved layout from that body.
• None of the reports mentions any change to stamp duty, registration fees or measurement fees.
• If you are buying, check the 7/12, the mutation entries, the measurement map and, where needed, the co-owners’ consent before you pay.

Sources: Sakal (Pune): details of the circular, 22 October 2026; Agrowon: the Revenue Minister’s remarks; Prahaar; Navarashtra; Tarun Bharat (tarunbharat.com); TV9 Marathi; News18 Lokmat; Land Records Department: questions and answers on e-Mojni and the 7/12