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 appellant, a Village Development Officer, was entrusted with disbursing a government grant of Rs. 9,800 to a beneficiary, Smt. Deveshwari Devi, under a poor persons' housing scheme in 1991-92. He was accused of misleading her into signing for the full amount while actually paying her only Rs. 4,000 and keeping the rest. He was convicted under Section 420 IPC (cheating), sentenced to two years' imprisonment (later reduced to one year by the Sessions Court), and his attempt to have the offence "compounded" (settled) with the complainant was rejected by the Uttarakhand High Court on the ground that such misuse of a public welfare scheme affects society at large, not just the individual complainant.
The Supreme Court agreed that even though cheating under Section 420 IPC is legally compoundable with the court's permission, a court retains discretion to refuse compounding where the offence has a broader social impact, such as misuse of a public welfare scheme meant for the poor, and found no fault in the High Court's refusal. However, considering that the incident was from 1991-92, the complaint was lodged with a 12-year delay, and the appellant was now a senior citizen, the Court held it was a fit case to reduce the sentence to the period he had already served, while upholding the conviction and affirming the fine.
Not every offence that is legally "compoundable" will actually be allowed to be settled privately between the accused and the victim: courts can refuse compounding where the wrongdoing harms the public interest, even while taking delay and the accused's age into account at the sentencing stage.
