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 moreThe landlord filed eviction petitions against two tenants in Secunderabad for wilful default and bona fide need of additional accommodation. The Rent Controller dismissed both petitions on the ground that the landlord-tenant relationship itself was not established, but the Rent Appellate Court reversed this and the Andhra Pradesh High Court upheld the Appellate Court's findings in revision. The tenants then appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that both they and the landlord were in fact encroachers on government land, so the landlord could not claim to evict them as "tenants," and that one encroacher cannot evict another.
The Supreme Court examined the extensive documentary record, registered sale deeds from 1911-1912 in favour of the landlord's father, a prior civil suit decree confirming the family's title, Cantonment Board mutation and assessment records, a release deed by other family members in the landlord's favour, and a government revenue officer's own confirmation that the property was private, not government, land, and held that the lower courts had correctly and concurrently found that the landlord had established the landlord-tenant relationship and that the tenants' denial of his title was not bona fide. The Court also found no serious dispute that the landlord genuinely needed the premises for additional accommodation. Accordingly, both appeals were dismissed, and the tenants were directed to hand over peaceful and vacant possession of their respective portions to the landlord by 31 December 2017, subject to filing the usual undertaking within four weeks.
A tenant cannot defeat eviction merely by claiming that the property is government land or that the landlord lacks title, where the landlord produces strong documentary proof of ownership (sale deeds, prior decrees, municipal records) and the tenant offers no real evidence to the contrary, courts will treat the denial of title as not bona fide and allow eviction to proceed.
