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.
Garg Builders had a construction contract with BHEL that expressly barred payment of interest on "any moneys due to the contractor." After a dispute, an arbitrator awarded Garg Builders pendente lite (during litigation) interest at 10% per annum, reasoning the clause only barred other categories of interest. BHEL challenged this before the Delhi High Court, which set aside the pendente lite interest portion of the award, and the Division Bench upheld that decision.
The Supreme Court held that under Section 31(7)(a) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, an arbitrator cannot award pre-reference or pendente lite interest if the parties' contract expressly bars it. The clause in this contract, barring interest on "any moneys due to the contractor", was wide enough to cover pendente lite interest, and the Court distinguished contrary precedent (Ambica Construction) as having been decided under the older 1940 Act, which had no such express bar. The Court also rejected the argument that the no-interest clause was void under Section 28 of the Contract Act, since arbitration agreements are specifically saved by that section. The appeal was dismissed.
When a commercial contract clearly states that no interest will be paid on amounts due, that bar is enforceable against an arbitrator under the 1996 Arbitration Act, even for interest accruing during the course of litigation.
