A sub-registrar in Ramanathapuram district has been transferred from Tiruvadanai to Devakottai after an audio recording alleging the collection of money above official registration charges spread publicly, according to Dinamalar – Tamil Nadu. The district registrar has said the recording is being investigated and that departmental action will follow if wrongdoing is established.
The matter relates to a document registration handled through a document writer in Tiruvadanai a few days ago. The person who registered the document was reportedly charged Rs 5,000 more than the government fee. The additional amount was later questioned in a phone conversation with a female employee working with the document writer.
According to the report, the employee said that money had to be paid as a bribe to people working in the sub-registrar’s office. The conversation was recorded as audio and subsequently circulated. The report does not establish whether the alleged payment was made directly to the sub-registrar or identify all individuals who may have been involved.
Following the circulation of the recording, sub-registrar Malini was transferred to Devakottai. The report identifies the action as a transfer, not as a finding of guilt. The administrative move has taken place while the allegations are being examined by the registration department.
District Registrar Srinivasan confirmed that the sub-registrar had been transferred to Devakottai. He said the audio recording was under investigation and that departmental action would be taken if the allegations were confirmed. No further details about the inquiry, including its timeline or whether other staff members are being examined, were provided in the report.
The episode places attention on the role of sub-registrar offices in property and document registration, where citizens and document writers interact with the state to complete transactions and pay prescribed charges. Any demand above the notified fee can increase the cost of registration for residents and make it difficult for applicants to distinguish official charges from unauthorised collections.
The immediate administrative response is the transfer of the official and the initiation of an inquiry into the audio recording. The registration department’s next stated step is to determine whether the allegations are substantiated and, if so, take departmental action.
