Why a Power of Attorney Does Not Transfer Property: A Bengaluru Buyer Warning

A Bengaluru buyer was offered a plot near Sarjapur at a price that seemed too good to be true, and it was, in a specific way. The seller did not have a sale deed to give. Instead he offered a package of a general power of attorney, an agreement to sell, and a will, and called it a GPA sale. The discount was real, but so was the danger, because in India a power of attorney does not transfer ownership of property. Understanding why is one of the most important protections a buyer can have.

The short answer. A general power of attorney, often shortened to GPA, only authorises someone to act on another person's behalf. It does not transfer ownership of immovable property. The Supreme Court settled this in Suraj Lamp and Industries versus State of Haryana, holding that a sale agreement, a power of attorney, and a will do not convey title, and that only a registered sale deed transfers ownership. The trade-off buyers are tempted by: a GPA sale can look cheaper and faster, but it leaves you without a clean, registered title and with very weak recourse if things go wrong.

What is a power of attorney in a property deal?

A power of attorney is a document by which one person authorises another to act on their behalf, and in a property context it lets an agent do things like sign papers or manage a transaction for the owner. A general power of attorney grants broad authority, while a special power of attorney is limited to specific acts. What a power of attorney does not do, by itself, is make the agent the owner of the property. It is an instrument of agency, not an instrument of transfer.

This distinction is the heart of the matter. When a seller offers to sell you a property through a GPA, they are not handing you ownership, they are at most handing you an authority to act, often combined with an agreement to sell and a will. None of these, alone or together, is the registered conveyance that the law requires to actually move ownership to you. Recognising that gap is what separates a safe purchase from a risky one, and it is a gap that a confident sales pitch is often designed to paper over.

Why can a GPA not transfer ownership?

A GPA cannot transfer ownership because the Supreme Court has held that title to immovable property passes only through a registered conveyance, not through a power of attorney. In Suraj Lamp and Industries versus State of Haryana, the Court held that transactions styled as GPA sales, or as a combination of a sale agreement, a power of attorney, and a will, do not convey title and cannot be treated as valid transfers of ownership. Only a registered sale deed does that, and this position has been reaffirmed by the courts since.

The practical effect is that a GPA sale does not give you what a buyer actually needs. It cannot, on its own, get the property mutated into your name in the official records, and it does not make you the legal owner. A registered sale deed, executed and registered with the Karnataka Department of Stamps and Registration, is what confers ownership and lets your name enter the records. Anything short of that leaves your ownership resting on a foundation the law does not recognise as a transfer.

What are the risks of buying on a GPA?

The central risk is that you pay for a property but never become its legal owner, which can unravel in several ways. Because a GPA does not transfer title, the person who sold to you remains, in law, connected to the property in a way that can be exploited. If that person dies, the power of attorney can lapse, leaving you stranded. If they revoke it, or simply refuse to cooperate later, you may have no clean way to complete a proper sale deed.

Worse, because the record still does not show you as owner, the original owner could sell the same property again to someone else through a registered deed, and that buyer's registered title would generally prevail over your unregistered GPA arrangement. In that situation the GPA buyer has very weak recourse. The apparent saving on stamp duty or price is small comfort against the possibility of losing the property entirely, which is why a discount offered specifically because the deal is on a GPA should raise your guard, not lower it. A creditor of the original owner could also make a claim, since on the record the property has never truly left that owner's hands, adding yet another way the arrangement can turn against you.

When is a power of attorney legitimate?

A power of attorney is perfectly legitimate when it is used for what it is, an authority to act, rather than as a substitute for a sale deed. A common and proper use is when an owner cannot be present to sign, for example an owner living abroad who authorises a trusted person to execute the registered sale deed on their behalf. Here the power of attorney simply enables the real transfer, the registered sale deed, to be signed, and ownership still passes through that deed.

The line to hold is simple. A power of attorney that helps a genuine owner complete a registered sale to you is fine, because the transfer still happens through a proper deed. A power of attorney offered to you as the transfer itself, in place of a sale deed, is not, because no registered conveyance ever moves ownership to you. If you are asked to buy on a GPA, insist on a registered sale deed from the actual owner instead, even if it costs more today.

GPA route or registered sale deed: how they compare

Set side by side, the two routes are not close, and the comparison makes clear why a registered sale deed is worth the extra cost. The table below contrasts what each actually gives a buyer.

How do you protect yourself, step by step?

You protect yourself by refusing to treat a GPA as a purchase and insisting on a proper registered transfer. The steps are straightforward, and each one closes a door that a GPA sale leaves open.

1. Ask for a registered sale deed from the actual recorded owner, not a GPA offered in place of one.
2. Verify who the recorded owner is through the land records before you discuss price.
3. If a power of attorney is involved, confirm it is genuine, registered, and still valid, and that it authorises this sale.
4. Treat any discount that exists only because the deal is on a GPA as a warning, not a bargain.
5. Insist that ownership pass to you through a registered sale deed executed by, or validly on behalf of, the owner.
6. Confirm the property can then be mutated into your name in the official records.
7. Take independent legal advice before paying anything if a GPA structure is being pushed on you.

If a seller will only deal on a GPA and refuses a registered sale deed, treat that as a clear reason to walk away from the transaction.

What should a Bengaluru buyer remember?

The single thing to remember is that ownership of property in India passes through a registered sale deed, and nothing less. A power of attorney, an agreement to sell, and a will are useful documents in their proper roles, but none of them makes you the owner. Our guide to gift deeds, sale deeds and wills explains what each instrument actually does, which is the best antidote to a GPA sales pitch.

If a deal can only be done on a GPA, the right question is why the seller cannot give you a registered sale deed at all. Often the answer reveals a title problem you would be inheriting. Insisting on a proper conveyance, and understanding the difference between an agreement and the final deed as covered in our guide to the sale agreement versus the sale deed, keeps your money tied to real ownership rather than a fragile arrangement that the law does not recognise as a transfer.

Frequently asked questions

Can a GPA holder legally sell property to me?

A genuine, valid power of attorney can let an agent execute a registered sale deed on the owner's behalf, and ownership then passes through that deed. What is not valid is treating the GPA itself as the sale. The Supreme Court has held that a GPA does not transfer title, so insist on a proper sale deed.

Why are GPA sales cheaper?

GPA sales can look cheaper because they may avoid the full stamp duty of a proper sale deed, and sellers sometimes use them where a clean title is difficult. That saving is exactly the risk. Without a registered sale deed you do not become the legal owner, so the discount can cost you the property.

Does a registered GPA transfer ownership?

No. Even a registered power of attorney only authorises someone to act, it does not convey ownership of immovable property. The Supreme Court in Suraj Lamp and Industries versus State of Haryana held that only a registered sale deed transfers title. A registered GPA can help execute that sale deed, but it is not a substitute for it.

I already bought on a GPA. What should I do?

Take legal advice promptly. Past GPA transactions were not all struck down, but they cannot serve as valid proof of title, so your position is uncertain. Where possible, work towards obtaining a proper registered sale deed from the rightful owner so that ownership is placed on a foundation the law recognises, and act before circumstances change.

Last updated 2026-09-05. PropNewz Team.