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 petitioner was convicted by the trial court, and the conviction affirmed by the Himachal Pradesh High Court, for repeatedly sexually assaulting his own minor daughter (around ten years old at the time) under the POCSO Act, along with criminal intimidation. He was sentenced to life imprisonment plus a fine. He approached the Supreme Court seeking to overturn the conviction, arguing he had been falsely implicated because of strained family relations.
The Supreme Court found the victim's testimony credible and unwavering, corroborated by her sister's evidence, medical records, and DNA evidence, and held that the statutory presumption of guilt under Section 29 of the POCSO Act stood unrebutted. It rejected the false-implication argument as hollow, holding that two courts had already concurrently and correctly found guilt with no perversity in their reasoning, so there was no ground to interfere under Article 136. Exercising its power under Article 142, the Court went further and directed the State of Himachal Pradesh to pay the victim Rs. 10,50,000 as compensation under the NALSA compensation scheme for sexual assault survivors, with part of it kept in a fixed deposit to secure her future.
Courts give strong weight to a child sexual abuse survivor's consistent, corroborated testimony, and a claim of "false implication due to family disputes" alone will not overturn a conviction backed by concurrent findings of two courts. The Supreme Court can also independently order victim compensation under its constitutional powers, even beyond what was awarded by the courts below.
