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.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1073
In circumstantial-evidence cases, forensic and DNA evidence must actually corroborate the alleged crime: a conviction cannot survive where the most crucial scientific evidence, on its own terms, points away from rather than toward the prosecution's theory.
Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1074
A conviction based purely on circumstantial evidence requires every link in the chain, timeline, witness credibility, forensic matches, and motive, to be proven beyond reasonable doubt; gaps or suppressed evidence at any link entitle the accused to the benefit of the doubt, even in a serious case like a double murder.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8505
Courts will not quash a criminal case merely because the accused has a plausible alibi-type defence; unless that defence is conclusive and undisputed, the matter must be tested through the ordinary trial process.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8547
A private compromise between victim and accused cannot by itself secure quashing of a case involving serious, heinous allegations like attempted murder with a weapon: such matters must proceed to trial regardless of settlement.
First Appeal from Order · 2026:DHC:8563
Railway Claims Tribunals cannot reject a bona fide passenger's death claim based on speculative inferences when there is no direct evidence of an alternative cause of death; the compensation scheme under the Railways Act is to be interpreted generously in favour of victims' families.
Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:8559
In matrimonial offences, courts can and do quash criminal proceedings once a genuine compromise is verified directly with the complainant, sparing both parties a prolonged and pointless trial.
Bail Application · 2026:DHC:8541
A co-accused's bail does not automatically extend to another accused where their actual roles in the offence differ materially; delay caused by one's own defence counsel cannot later be used as a ground for bail.
Execution Petition · 2026:DHC:8567
An arbitral award must be adequately stamped before a court can enforce it; courts give only a limited window to cure such defects, after which the award becomes legally unusable until the deficiency is fixed.
Arbitration Petition · 2026:DHC:8555
A genuine settlement reached through mediation renders a pending arbitration-related court petition moot, allowing parties to close out litigation quickly once they resolve their dispute privately.
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Legal Case Shots is a searchable database of Supreme Court of India judgments, each broken down into the case type, the court's key holding, and a practical lesson learnt, with the full judgment available as a PDF for citation or deeper reading.
Universal Ferro & Allied Chemicals Ltd. (UFAC), a 100% Export Oriented Unit, had an arrangement with Tata Iron & Steel Company (TISCO) to convert raw Manganese Ore supplied by TISCO into Silicon Manganese for a job-work fee, after which the finished goods were sold in the domestic market with the Central Government's permission and on payment of concessional excise duty. The tax authorities issued show-cause notices alleging this arrangement violated the EOU policy (since the goods were not exported) and demanded full duty as if the goods had been imported, along with penalties and threatened confiscation. The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal ruled in UFAC's favour, and the Revenue appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court held that the term "sale" under the Central Excise Act has a wider meaning than under the Sale of Goods Act, and the transfer of goods between UFAC and TISCO for consideration qualified as a sale for excise purposes. It further held that the tax authorities had overlooked a later government circular (dated 22.5.2000) that extended job-work permission to EOUs in all sectors, not just the originally listed ones, and that UFAC's arrangement had the Development Commissioner's express approval throughout. Since the goods were sold domestically in accordance with the applicable EXIM Policy provision and government circulars, the concessional duty exemption notification validly applied, and the Revenue's demand for full import-equivalent duty was unsustainable. The Revenue's appeal was accordingly dismissed.
When a business has acted throughout with the express written clearance of the competent regulatory authority (here, the Development Commissioner), tax authorities cannot retroactively penalise that conduct by relying on an outdated or superseded circular while ignoring a later one that specifically permits the activity.
