The Maharashtra Registration and Stamp Department has cancelled the appointment of Authorised Service Providers (ASPs) who were facilitating online registration of Leave and License documents. The decision, effective immediately, was announced through an official circular issued by the Inspector General of Registration and Controller of Stamps (IGR) Ravindra Binwade (IAS).
Now tenants and landlords must register directly on the government portal to prevent fraudulent practices.
The ASP system was introduced on a pilot basis in 2015 to help access online registration services that had been initiated in 2014. However, over time, the department received numerous complaints of irregularities against the service providers. Reports from regional offices also indicated misuse of procedures, reads the circular.
With the rise in digital literacy and wider public access to online registration facilities, the department concluded that the ASP mechanism was no longer required.Ramesh Prabhu, the chairman of Maharashtra Societies Welfare Association, has welcomed the move. He said, “This will remove the licence Raj. Earlier only a handful of authorised persons were allowed; now anyone can undertake the process anywhere; through an advocate, chartered accountant or even a photocopy centre or by the landlord himself.”
