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 moreA young married woman died at her matrimonial home, and her father alleged she had been driven to suicide over dowry demands, though he also suspected foul play given wounds and blood he noticed on her body. Her mother-in-law was tried alongside her father-in-law and brother-in-law; while all three were acquitted of murder and dowry-death charges, the mother-in-law alone was convicted under Section 498-A (cruelty) based on statements from the deceased's mother and brother that the deceased had complained of dowry-related harassment. The Uttarakhand High Court upheld this conviction, leading to the present appeal.
The Supreme Court found that the complainant father's own police complaint, filed the very next day after the death, made no mention whatsoever of any dowry demand by the mother-in-law, and this omission was never satisfactorily explained. The prosecution's own witnesses (the deceased's mother and brother) admitted under cross-examination that the deceased had never made any complaint about dowry harassment during multiple visits to her parental home, and even said her marriage was happy and no dowry demand existed at the time of marriage. A neighbour who had no stake in the case testified that no dowry demand was ever made. Given this, the Court held that the conviction rested on conjecture and unreliable, inconsistent testimony rather than credible evidence of sustained cruelty, and it acquitted the appellant.
A criminal conviction for cruelty or dowry harassment requires consistent and credible evidence of persistent conduct. Courts will not sustain a conviction where the original police complaint is silent on the allegation and the key witnesses' own testimony undermines rather than supports the claim.
