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 moreLong-pending litigation over arrears of rent owed by tenants to the Port of Calcutta. The High Court had granted the tenants 36 monthly installments to pay the arrears and fixed interest on the arrears at 6% per annum (the tenants had already given up any challenge to the underlying rent revision itself). The Port Trust argued the interest rate should have been 15-18% as per its own board-fixed rate schedule.
The Supreme Court noted the High Court had never actually examined the correct interest rate issue, so its 6% figure could not be treated as a binding precedent for rent-fixation generally. Rather than sending the matter back for yet more litigation on a long-pending dispute, the Court exercised its special constitutional power under Article 142 to give finality: it set aside the 6% interest fixation but, since the tenants had already paid interest at that rate, ruled there would be no further levy, effectively closing the dispute on the status quo, while making clear this one-off resolution should not be cited as a precedent.
The Supreme Court can use its unique Article 142 power to bring a practical, final end to a long-running dispute between parties, even by crafting a one-time solution that isn't meant to be a general rule for future cases.
