Bank OTS scheme not a right without upfront payment: SCThe Supreme Court has ruled that a bank's onetime settlement (OTS) scheme cannot be invoked as a matter of right and that borrowers must strictly comply with its mandatory conditions, including upfront payment of a specified portion of dues, to avail themselves of the benefits of the scheme.A Bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and A G Masih set aside an Andhra Pradesh High Court order that had directed the State Bank of India (SBI) to reconsider a borrower's OTS application despite the latter's failure to make the required advance deposit."Crossing the hurdle of eligibility per se would not entitle a defaulting borrower to claim consideration of his application unless the application itself satisfies the other stipulated conditions," the top court observed, clarifying that eligibility alone does not confer a vested right.Writing for the Bench, Justice Datta noted: "It is clear as a sunny day that an application for availing OTS would be processed only if it was accompanied by an upfront payment of 5 per cent of the outstanding dues. The respondent failed to deposit even a single paisa, rendering the application incomplete and undeserving of consideration."The apex court reiterated that the OTS mechanism is a concession, not an enforceable right.The Bench said SBI was justified in rejecting the proposal since the very precondition for processing, which is deposit of 5 per cent of the outstanding dues, had not been met.The dispute arose after Tanya Energy, the borrower, defaulted on loans secured against seven mortgaged properties.Following the account's classification as a nonperforming asset (NPA), SBI initiated recovery under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, and attempted auctions of the mortgaged assets.Parallelly, the borrower applied under SBI's OTS scheme of 2020. However, the application was rejected by the bank on grounds of noncompliance, past defaults, suppression of facts, and pending proceedings before the debt recovery tribunal (DRT).SC asks Centre to adopt blockchain for property registrationsThe Supreme Court said property transactions in India were "traumatic" and asked the Centre to take the lead in adopting blockchain technology to make the registration process seamless nationwide.Calling for a complete overhaul of India's land registration and titling system, a Bench of Justice P S Narasimha and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said the existing framework, rooted in colonial-era laws, had created confusion, inefficiency, and a flood of litigation.The Court highlighted a "dichotomy between registration and title," urging the government to modernise the system using emerging technologies such as blockchain.The Bench asked the Law Commission of India to study the issue comprehensively and recommend measures for establishing a conclusive, technology-enabled property ownership system."The Registration Act mandates registration of documents, not of title. Registration of a sale deed does not confer guaranteed ownership; it only serves as a public record with presumptive evidentiary value," the Court observed.It noted that even a registered sale deed is not conclusive proof of ownership, forcing buyers to trace decades of past transactions to verify title. "Property purchase has not been easy. It is not difficult to find people grudgingly telling us that it is, in fact, traumatic," Justice Narasimha wrote in the judgment.According to the Court, property-re

Bank OTS scheme not a right withour upfront payment: SC

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