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 respondent society had applied on 24.02.2003 for registration under Section 12AA of the Income Tax Act, which grants tax-exemption status to charitable institutions. The High Court had held that if the tax department does not respond to such an application within six months, the application is deemed to be registered. The Income Tax Department appealed to the Supreme Court, worried that this rule might be misapplied to give the respondent an even earlier effective registration date than the six-month mark from its application.
The Supreme Court found no basis for the department's apprehension, holding that the High Court's ruling could only logically mean that deemed registration takes effect six months after the date of the application, not any earlier. Accordingly, the Court clarified and made explicit that the respondent's registration under Section 12AA would take effect from 24.08.2003 (six months after the 24.02.2003 application), resolving the precise dispute that had been appealed. With that clarification made, and expressly leaving all other, unrelated questions of law open for future cases, the appeal was disposed of with no order as to costs.
Where a tax authority fails to act on a registration application under Section 12AA within the statutory six-month window, the "deemed registration" that results takes effect from six months after the application date, not before, giving both the taxpayer and the department a clear, predictable effective date.
