Real judgements, distilled
Court judgements broken down into the case type, how the decision played out, and the lesson worth remembering, with the full judgement available as a PDF.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1094
An older qualification must still satisfy the eligibility rules governing the appointment sought. Here, the certificate's early date did not secure reinstatement, and rejection of eligibility should not be confused with a conclusive finding that the certificate was forged.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1095
A party benefiting from a conditional stay must meet its deposit requirement or face enforcement. The additional ₹15 crore deposit secures the pending dispute; it does not settle the land's final compensation or amount to an immediate payment to the landowners.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1093
An alleged attempt to kill does not become a lesser offence simply because the victim avoided a fatal injury. Restoring this charge means the accusation must be tried; it does not establish that the accused is guilty.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1090
For the assessment in this case, assistance reducing ordinary manufacturing costs was taxable even though the government wanted to encourage industry. The purpose and actual operation of the particular subsidy mattered more than its general development label.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1091
Proof that someone caused a serious injury does not by itself prove the additional ingredients of robbery. A court can substitute a lesser offence supported by the evidence; the sentencing reduction here depended on Appa's particular circumstances.
Special Leave Petition (Civil) · 2026 INSC 1092
Someone challenging an election must ensure that the personal-presentation requirement is met and can be proved. Merely entering the court building does not establish compliance, and a filing defect can end the challenge before the election allegations are examined.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1088
An employee who retires on 30 June may be entitled to the increment that falls due on 1 July after completing a year of service. Authorities that delay paying the amounts due must pay interest after the deadline set by the court.
Civil Appeal · 2026 INSC 1089
Recruitment must follow the qualifications stated in the advertisement and the governing Recruitment Rules. A court will not override a merit-based eligibility decision made under those rules merely because the candidate concerned was higher in the written test.
Writ Petition (Criminal) · 2026:DHC:8797
A person who occupied property only because of employment has no independent right to remain once the employment and decree end. Even when a petition fails, courts can make practical arrangements to let a person recover personal belongings.
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Log in to see moreIn a matrimonial dispute, the appellant had made certain allegations (about his wife's conduct) in anticipatory bail applications filed before both the Sessions Court and the Bombay High Court. The Sessions Court held it was premature to decide whether these statements were false since evidence had not yet been led. However, the High Court, relying on a preliminary police investigation report filed just two days after the FIR, concluded a prima facie case of perjury was made out and ordered the appellant's prosecution under Section 340 CrPC.
The Supreme Court held that initiating perjury proceedings requires a deliberate, conscious false statement tested against genuinely unimpeachable evidence, and a preliminary investigation report filed only two days after the FIR, before any real investigation had occurred, could not qualify as such unimpeachable evidence. The Court also found that the High Court's own order granting anticipatory bail had actually been based on different reasons, not on a finding that the appellant's statements were false. Since no reliable evidence of deliberate falsehood existed, the threshold for prosecuting perjury was not met, and the High Court's order was set aside.
Courts should not order perjury prosecutions lightly or based merely on contradictory statements or preliminary police reports: there must be clear, unimpeachable proof of a deliberate false statement on a material point before a person can be put through a perjury trial.
