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 original plaintiff (predecessor of the petitioners) had agreed to sell certain plots to a cooperative housing society, and a Power of Attorney (PoA) was executed in favour of the society's secretary to complete the sale. The plaintiff later alleged the PoA was obtained by coercion and had been cancelled before the sale deed was executed, and first filed (and lost) a suit for injunction; when that ultimately reached the High Court in second appeal, the High Court dismissed it but granted "liberty" to file a fresh, comprehensive suit. Relying on that liberty, the plaintiff filed a new suit seeking to declare the sale deeds void and recover possession, which was decreed by the trial court but reversed on appeal and by the High Court as barred by limitation, res judicata, and non-joinder of necessary parties.
The Supreme Court dismissed the special leave petition and affirmed the High Court's judgment. It held that the "liberty" granted by the High Court in the earlier round could not revive a cause of action or restart the limitation clock. It only permitted a suit subject to legal defences like limitation, and did not erase the effect of Order 23 Rule 1 read with Rule 2 of the Civil Procedure Code. The Court found the entire case rested on allegations of coercion and cancellation of the PoA that had already been rejected concurrently by three courts in the earlier round, squarely attracting res judicata under Section 11 CPC. It described the liberty as "akin to flogging a dead horse," incapable of giving fresh life to grounds already lost.
When a court grants "liberty to file a fresh suit," that liberty does not reset the limitation period or allow re-litigating issues already conclusively decided against a party: a fresh suit still has to satisfy limitation and res judicata on its own merits.
